Substitute Teacher
by Chaotic Lullaby
Summary: Mr. Narumi needs someone to fill in for him...and the lucky man is Roy Mustang! FMA...somehow...crosses over with Gakuen Alice. Implied Royai, MikanXNatsume and SerinaXNarumi.
1. Alchemy versus Alice

_Author's notes: This is my first attempt at an anime crossover. Plus, all my information on Gakuen Alice has been based primarily on the anime…but yes, I will get to reading the manga when I can. XD _

_In the meantime…enjoy? Some of it is crack-tastic, out-of-character and absolutely warped, especially the fact that the Alice Academy is in Amestris, or at least, real close to it. Yes. Mwahaha._

---

To any ambitious military officer, there is nothing like a day away from mountains of paperwork, panicking soldiers, and most of all, nosy, bossy higher-ups you want to surpass someday.

These days, the work at Eastern Headquarters was getting hectic, what with the situation in Lior and several other things in between. One particular stressed-out officer strolled through the streets of a fairly faraway city in the East, a gray traveling cloak draped over his blue military uniform and a wind whipping through his black hair, tossing it and making it even messier than it already was. But it didn't matter – women's heads still turned to look at this handsome, yet dangerous stranger, eyes glittering, mouths opening in dreamy sighs and hearts longing for a man like him.

Colonel Roy Mustang was thoroughly enjoying his day off, and nothing could spoil it. Every now and then he would flash a smile – smirk, actually – at any given direction, so long as it had pretty ladies around to sway. And indeed he swayed them all – including one girl with her jealous boyfriend, who quickly steered her away and kept her from chancing another furtive glance at Roy.

But the women weren't the only sights to see. Roy had never been in this particular city before, if his memory didn't deceive him, and it was a thriving metropolis full of things he had never seen and sounds he had never heard, at least, not in his station in the East. Hell, this place was actually even better than Central, his old post that he sometimes missed. If he had a choice, he would move East HQ into this part of the East…that is, assuming that this city was still part of East Amestris. Roy was pretty good at geography, but he had never known of a city like this existing anywhere in or around Amestris until today.

Still, nothing could ruin his perfect day. Nothing, not even –

"Oh, I'm so sorry!"

His military and alchemic instincts quickly snapping – quite literally – into action, Roy dug his right hand into his pocket and drew it out again, this time shrouded in a white glove with a transmutation circle sewn onto it. He snapped once, twice, and created a flash of fire that encircled him like a dragon, but never intending to hurt the man who had bumped into him – maybe intimidate or forewarn, but not hurt. The Flame Alchemist was above that. But _nobody_ ruined his work-free days…

Of course, when he registered the harmlessness of this stranger – a blond, violet-eyed man casually clothed and freely sauntering down the sidewalk as though he were floating on air – and set his instincts aside, the flames disappeared, and Roy knew he owed this man an apology.

"No…I'm sorry," said Roy, grinning sheepishly. "Guess I've been working too hard."

The man said nothing, but continued to stare at Roy with wide, aghast eyes, starting from the top of his head and down to his boots, stopping to glance at his gloved hand and probably sensing the heat and smoke left behind by the fire. The colonel could barely read the look on this man's face – was he scrutinizing him, like he was some kind of lab rat? Had he never seen this kind of alchemy before? Roy and his fiery alchemy had quite a reputation in Amestris; it was rare to find anyone who didn't know him…

"No, no, it's all right," he finally spoke, his voice a rather light baritone. "You can call me Narumi. And you are…?"

So the latter theory was more plausible, Roy knew. "I'm Colonel Roy Mustang, also known as the Flame Alchemist." And he couldn't help but brag.

The two of them shook hands and exchanged warm smiles, but Narumi surprised Roy by suddenly exclaiming, "At last, I've found a substitute teacher!"

"What?"

"Oh…I guess I forgot to tell you. I teach at a school not too far from here, called the Alice Academy. I'm the homeroom teacher of an elementary class, but unfortunately, I have to leave them for a while and need someone to take over. But it looks like luck's on my side today! Was that your Alice?"

"Alice?" Roy repeated. "Who's Alice?" Perhaps it was someone he already knew, as he dated a girl – or two, maybe more – named Alice in the past…

"You know…it's a special ability," said Narumi, nodding. "There are many different types and forms, and yours reminds me of one particular student in the Academy. Your Alice must be fire."

_So that was what he was talking about_, mused Roy to himself. "You mean my alchemy?"

"Alchemy?" It was Narumi's turn to echo.

"You know…understanding the composition of an object, breaking it down and then reforming or modifying it into something else?" recited the Flame Alchemist from memory. "Actually, in my case, I assess the composition of the air, modify the oxygen density and combine it with heat from friction, in this case, when I snap."

Narumi stroked his chin for a moment, digesting this information. "I see. So you have an Alice of alchemy, or do you just call Alices alchemy, wherever you come from?"

For several seconds, silence reigned over them as he waited for an answer, and Roy desperately tried to search for one. But in the end, it was Narumi again who broke the long pause.

"Hmm…well, this alchemy of yours sounds – and looks – like a special ability of sorts, like what we call an Alice. Are you interested in becoming a teacher, even for just a few weeks or so?"

"A teacher?" Years of training kept Roy's jaw from dropping straight onto the pavement. "You mean…"

"I've been looking for a substitute for a long time. I teach Japanese, and I've already found a Japanese teacher who's willing to take over, but isn't willing to become the homeroom teacher for my elementary class."

"Well…what are you up to, which is supposedly more important than your classes?" asked Roy, raising an eyebrow.

Narumi shifted around. "It's confidential business," he blurted out. "It'll just be for a while, anyway. Please?"

"I already have a job working for the Amestrian military," was the terse reply. "Ask someone else." Another breeze blew past the men, lifting Roy's cloak as he started to walk away. But Narumi wouldn't have any of it. He strode forward and stretched out an arm, laying a firm hand on Roy's shoulder.

Stopping and turning around, the Flame Alchemist saw a genuine, beseeching expression etched on Narumi's face. He looked so desperate that a part of Roy almost wanted to give in; help the guy…and maybe this could be one way of getting away from the grueling paperwork back at East HQ…

"Please," whispered the teacher. "You'll get paid, we'll provide you with everything you'll need, even contact the military you serve and tell them you will be absent for a couple of weeks, a bit more, but not more than a month. It won't be that hard – and I'll brief you on how everything goes in the Academy. Judging from how you described your al – alchemy, it sounds like a combination of technical and latent, but since you control fire, you would definitely fall under the dangerous type."

This time, both of Roy's eyebrows went up, almost disappearing into his hair. He took a deep breath, stuffed his hands into his pockets, and stared at Narumi for a long, long time. The sounds of the city seemed to be amplified a hundredfold, until Roy gave his verdict.

"It always happens…I'm just too much of a softie. Fine, I'll take the job. But only till you return from whatever you have to do, all right? And you tell everyone else at Eastern Headquarters where I'll be. And, start briefing me now what the hell this Alice business is all about."

"No problem," said Narumi, extending his hand. The two of them shook on it. "I'd give you a tour of the academy as well, but it's quite big, and you won't need it if you're just going to fill in for me. And be glad I didn't use my human pheromone Alice on you."

"Right…so where is this so-called academy?" asked Roy.

Narumi chuckled, but quickly covered his mouth before he really laughed his head off. "It's the big gate right beside us! Haven't you noticed?"

Craning his neck, Roy finally noticed the huge metal gate that led to something like an enormous manor. There were a few buildings in the distance, but he had never expected something like a school for children with special abilities to be as big as a small town. He glared at the teacher, who started chortling again after seeing the stupefied look on Roy's face.

"Well, what are we standing around here for?" asked Narumi, when he calmed down. "Come on!"

---

"I saw you just outside the Academy – the two of you, to be exact," said a woman with light blond hair, her hands hovering over a misty crystal ball on her table. She closed her eyes briefly and smiled. "So, Narumi, you've finally found a substitute teacher. Will he be able to teach English?"

"What do you mean?" asked Roy, his eyes still darting around the main faculty office, meeting the gazes of the other teachers in the Alice Academy, scrutinizing them as they did him.

"Miss Serina Yamada teaches English. She has the Alice of sight, which means she can see any aspect of the present in her crystal ball. She will be watching me closely after I leave, in case anything happens, and thus she won't be able to attend her classes, either. Not only will you become the substitute homeroom teacher for Elementary Class B, Mr. Mustang, but also the substitute English teacher."

Roy twiddled his fingers, nodding absently. "Right. So, what are the types of – "

A new, stringent voice interrupted their conversation. "Narumi, how sure are you that this man is even remotely capable of handling a class? You just picked him out of the streets after seeing his Alice of – "

"Alchemy," Roy either corrected, or added.

"He's not even an Alice! He said so himself!"

"An Alice is a special power that only a handful of people possess. According to Mr. Mustang, not everyone in the country where he comes from knows alchemy, so that must mean it is a special ability of some sort. Why don't you give Jinno a personal demonstration?"

Roy stared at Narumi. "A personal demonstration of my alchemy – Alice – whatever?"

Narumi nodded, and so did Serina, who was now watching the scene instead of her crystal ball. The rest of the teachers put down their work as well to see what kind of power the substitute teacher possessed.

A small green frog on Jinno's shoulder croaked as the rod he was holding started to crackle and sparkle with electricity. Jinno himself seemed to crackle and sparkle with suppressed infuriation and contempt, and he focused his dangerously narrowed eyes on Roy alone.

But Roy was faster. He raised his right hand, already shrouded in white ignition cloth touched with red threads intertwined into a strange design, and snapped. More sparks suddenly flew from Jinno's wand, no longer the whitish-gold threads of lightning, but were splashed with red, orange and yellow. Jinno gasped and dropped his wand as it burst into flames, and in a panic-stricken spell, stomped all over it to put out the fire before examining his hand for any burns while cursing under his breath.

The office echoed with applause and cheers, especially from Narumi and Serina. Roy simply stood there, drinking in the attention and pocketing his glove again. Neither could he resist smirking widely at Jinno, who threw him a dirty look in reply.

"Fine," he muttered, now sure that his hand was not seriously injured – only a bit red from a few first-degree burns. "Your Alice reminds me of a student's Alice though."

"That's true," chimed in another teacher. "Maybe they're related. They even have the same hair color!"

"Do you think they also have the same Alice shape?" asked yet another.

Narumi laughed and held up a hand. "Okay, okay, everyone. I think Mr. Mustang – Roy – needs a little orientation right now, so he knows the ins and outs of the Academy. Then we can introduce him to his advisory class, give him the necessary lesson plans and papers – "

"Paperwork?" gasped Roy, strongly reminded of his workload back in Eastern Headquarters. "You never mentioned anything about paperwork!"

"Being a teacher isn't as easy as it looks. Are you and your _Alice _up for the challenge…Mustang?" asked Jinno cynically. "Besides, you can't just teach a class without being ready or without knowing what you're going to teach them."

"Why don't we start first with the briefing, and then end with the paperwork?" suggested Roy, glaring back at Jinno. "And this should be easy, just like being in the military!"

"The…military?" repeated Serina.

"Not_ our_ military, that's for sure. Looks like there'll be a lot of explaining to do before I leave," said Narumi, crossing the office towards his table. He dug through his bag, apparently checking if something was there, and quickly closed it again. But before he did, Roy caught a glimpse of something white and tied up with string – a wad of envelopes.

"I hope you have a much better reason this time," grumbled Jinno. "These days, you've been coddling that Mikan Sakura as if she were your daughter. But that, or the new star on her uniform, doesn't change the fact that she is a troublemaker! Are you trying to send her letters?"

Roy blinked. "A troublemaker?"

Narumi sighed and shook his head. "We'll get to that later. Okay, you already know the basic definition of an Alice. Now you should know the different types and shapes it has…"

"And then I'll have to send a letter to Eastern Headquarters before they start sending out a search party," added Roy. "After all, I never thought I'd end up becoming a teacher until today."

"Don't worry – it'll be fun!" Narumi reassured him.

"There are five types of Alice," Serina began. "Latent, Technical, Somatic, Special Ability, and Dangerous…"

"Which are different from the shapes; Childhood, Diffuse, Intermittent, and Limitless."

"Narumi, I haven't even explained the types yet, or the star rankings of the students."

"Oh, sorry."

"If I'm supposed to be a teacher, then why do I feel like a student right now?" quipped Roy, plopping into the nearest armchair and making himself comfortable.

Jinno was the only teacher who didn't laugh.

"If you're that excited to teach, don't worry – this won't take long," said Narumi, winking.


	2. Fighting Fire with Fire

"I think you look very much like a teacher now, Mr. Mustang. Or should I say, Roy."

"Yeah…well, I can't very well teach in my military uniform now, can I?"

Narumi laughed as the two of them turned a corner through the corridors of the Alice Academy's elementary building. "I know. Anyhow, since it would be rather complicated to explain how alchemy works, and how it's similar and different from Alices, just say you have an Alice of fire, if anyone asks. Plus, due to the Academy's ties with our country's military and government…it would be better if you didn't tell them you work for the military, even if it's not ours."

"Right," said Roy, resisting the urge to start bombarding Narumi with questions. "Anyway…is that Elementary Class B over there?"

"Yup, that's it, your advisory class. Oh, and since every last student has an Alice, don't be surprised if…well, strange things happen during your classes." Narumi winked.

"Oh, I've probably dealt with stranger things, don't worry."

---

_Dear Grandpa,_

_My classes at the Alice Academy have been great so far. Some of the lessons are really hard, but at least I have Hotaru and Yuu and Ruka and all my other classmates, even Natsume, helping me, even though sometimes it still takes me a while to get the lessons even when they're already the ones explaining._

_Right now, I'm writing this letter from my classroom. Ever since I became a one-star, it's like I'm now really part of the Academy, and I get to move into the one-stars' dorm, get the same allowance and everything. Mr. Narumi's not yet around…maybe he's still looking for someone to teach us while he's gone. We already have a Japanese teacher, but he doesn't want to be our homeroom adviser. Maybe it's because Natsume scared him. Oh well, but he was nice. I hope I get to meet our new teacher – and maybe he or she will also be as nice as Mr. Narumi! I also hope he remembers to deliver this letter, and maybe other letters he hasn't delivered yet, to you…_

Mikan Sakura tapped her pen on the pink, strawberry-scented paper in thought, paying no heed to the tiny blue dots she was making after the last word she wrote. Despite all the chaos going on in the back of the classroom courtesy of all her classmates' Alices, she still managed to concentrate on writing a letter to her grandfather, who lived in the far reaches of the country.

"Hey, Mikan, is that another letter to your grandpa?"

She turned around, brown pigtails bouncing on her shoulders, and faced a blond boy pushing up his glasses to his nose.

"Oh, hi, Yuu…yeah, it is!"

"Does he already know that you're now a one-star student here in the Academy?" asked Yuu Tobita, the class representative and a three-star – an honor student.

"I hope he does...I don't know if he got my other letters so far or if Mr. Narumi's going to send them now."

"I bet he'll be happy to know that you're now a one-star, Mikan," he replied, smiling brightly. Suddenly, the two of them heard a crash. She and Yuu whipped around quickly and gasped as a small mechanical mouse zoomed down the aisle, a key on its back turning so fast that it was a gray blur on the mouse's pink body. A girl pranced after it on all fours like a cat – and even had ears and whiskers like one.

Mikan pointed excitedly at the mouse as it turned around a table, the girl in hot pursuit and even meowing in determination. "Isn't that one of Hotaru's inventions? It's so cute!"

Yuu nodded. "Hey, you better watch out, Sumire!" he shouted at the girl. "You could get hurt, or we could break something!"

"That stupid mouse!" whined Sumire as she leapt into the air, ready to pounce on the mouse. But it whizzed away, and she landed on her knees, wincing as she made contact with the floor.

"Are you all right?" asked Mikan.

"I'm fine!" was the irritated reply as Sumire continued chasing the mouse. After trading a look with Yuu, Mikan went back to writing a letter to her grandfather, while Yuu decided to take crowd control.

For several minutes, Elementary Class B was like this, with Mikan finally finishing her letter, folding it carefully so it fit into a small white envelope with a pink strawberry motif. Just as she finished writing her grandfather's name and address, and her own name, the door opened, and suddenly every student scampered back into his or her seat. Hotaru Imai, the inventor of the mechanical mouse, was already clutching it and a small remote control when she sat down beside Mikan. As for Sumire, she now looked more human than feline, and no longer stood on her hands and knees as she scampered back into her seat.

"Mr. Narumi!" Mikan exclaimed as their homeroom adviser sauntered in, casually tucking a strand of his blond hair behind an ear. "Does this mean you found a substitute teacher?" She craned her neck to look at the shady stranger behind him, who was obviously doing his best not to seem shocked at the class' behavior.

He grinned. "That's right, everyone. And before I go, I will personally introduce him to you. You see, I met him not too long ago outside the Academy. He'll also be teaching you English, as Miss Serina Yamada will be out as well, helping me."

"Did you use your Alice, Mr. Narumi?" asked Mikan curiously, turning her letter over and over in her hands.

"No, I'm glad I didn't have to," he said, chuckling. "Anyway, without further ado, I would like you to meet your new teacher, Mr. Roy Mustang!" Narumi even made a flourishing gesture with his left hand, as though enticing the substitute teacher to come in.

He did.

The students all gazed expectantly at the man who walked into the classroom, his head held rather high. He had black hair, some of it falling into his midnight-blue eyes. His face was serious and determined, as though he was being led into battle instead of into a classroom. A long gray cloak was draped on his right arm, which also held books and other teaching paraphernalia, and he was clad in a white shirt under a navy jacket that went well with his eyes, long black pants, black shoes that looked more like boots, and a tie that had something like jagged red, orange and yellow triangles savagely cutting into each other against a smoky background.

Nobody said anything, not even as this mysterious character passed by a still-smiling Narumi and took his place at the table, putting all his things on top of it and hanging the cloak on the chair. However, some girls started whispering excitedly among themselves, their eyes sparkling, and they kept glancing at him surreptitiously.

"Anyway," Narumi went on, once again showing off his talent for breaking silences, "I do hope you will get along with Mr. Mustang. His – ahem – Alice, is very interesting." He seemed to direct this particular sentence towards a scowling black-haired boy seated way in the back with his feet perched on his table. "But don't worry, I won't be gone for too long! Is there anything else you want to say before I leave?" He started towards the door.

"Wait, Mr. Narumi!" Mikan blurted out exactly at his last syllable. "I have to give you something!"

As she stood up and half-ran to him, she could feel the new teacher's eyes on her, but didn't pay much attention. What mattered now was thrusting the envelope into his open hand.

"Will you take this to Grandpa too?" she asked, almost shyly.

Narumi nodded, pocketing the letter. "Of course I will, Mikan. I promise. Be good for Mr. Mustang, all right?" He patted her on the head. "Same goes for all of you – I do hope you don't give him a hard time!"

Mikan's classmates either flashed (seemingly) innocent looks, put on poker faces, barely listened to him, or pretended to not listen to him. She was the only one who nodded and smiled proudly, waving as Narumi disappeared down the corridor before shuffling back into her place beside Hotaru, trying her best to keep her smile as the substitute's gaze bored into hers, and everyone else's as well.

"Good…morning, class," greeted Roy, taking out a silver watch from his jacket pocket. "Obviously, you already know my name, but for those who have rather short memories, you can call me Mr. Mustang, and I will be your homeroom and English teacher for a few weeks or until Mr. Narumi and Miss Yamada resume their posts. Do you have any questions? Perhaps you have anything against me becoming your substitute teacher?"

Mikan's hand was the first – and possibly the only one – to shoot into the air.

"What is your name?"

"I'm Mikan Sakura, sir, and I'm just really curious – what's your Alice?"

Roy raised an eyebrow. "Mikan Sakura," he repeated to himself, thumbing through his record book. Finally, when he found her name, he focused on her again. "Do you really want to know what my al – Alice is?"

"Yes, sir!" she said. Other students expressed their agreement by muttering, nodding or both. Only one seemed uninterested, and simply sat there, his arms crossed and his eyes narrowed. Roy saw him, but pretended not to notice.

"Very well…" He took out a pair of white gloves from his pants pocket, and put them on. As he did so, everyone could see strange designs sewn into them in red – circles, with triangles in them, something kind of like a small flame…and was that a lizard, or maybe a salamander?

But before anyone dared ask questions about his gloves, Roy stretched out his arm as though reaching out for the ceiling, and snapped his fingers. At first, everyone thought that it was a magic trick, and he was making red string come from his hands, but apparently it was much more than just string, as it leapt from his fingers, blazing brightly and sailing over the children's heads. A few of them even gasped.

It was a _spark_. Eventually, it grew bigger and longer till it looked like rope on fire. It encircled the space underneath the ceiling before whizzing back towards Roy and taking its place behind and over him, writhing, twisting and elongating itself until a trail of flames spelled out in impeccable, yet burning script…_Roy Mustang._

Everyone stared up at the fiery display over his head, and thrilled whispers filled the air.

"Did you see that, Hotaru?" Mikan asked, grinning widely.

"Of course I did," was the reply.

"Amazing, isn't it?" added Yuu.

But Roy's next snap quickly snapped them back towards his display, and they saw another blaze of fire come from his left hand, twirling around his name like a coiled spring, before erupting in a flurry of fireworks. Sparks rained down, threatening to ignite the table, but they all disappeared before hitting it. Roy was completely unscathed as well, but winced slightly at the tang of smoke that briefly hung in the classroom before dissipating.

Then the students of Elementary Class B realized that the triangles on Roy's tie were actually bright, burning flames.

"You have an Alice of fire, sir?" asked Yuu, voicing out the question in everyone else's heads, yet still awestruck by his flamboyant show himself.

"I guess you could say that," said Roy, leaning casually against his desk. "Is there anything else you want to know about me?"

Even though he directed this question towards the entire class, his attention was more on a group of boys at the very back of the room talking among themselves, but he could catch several snippets of their conversation.

"…you can do it too…"

"…Alice is fire…"

"C'mon, Natsume!"

One of the boys didn't look interested or excited at all. His face had concern and hesitation written all over it, and he cradled a white rabbit. He frowned thoughtfully as he caressed the rabbit's head, but didn't shake his head or say anything to add to their conversation.

"What's going on?" asked Roy warily.

The black-haired student who barely showed any interest in knowing what Roy's "Alice" was scowled and put his feet down from the table. "None of your business," he growled.

A few of his classmates gasped.

"Natsume!" Mikan couldn't help but shout.

"Natsume?" Roy repeated. "So, you must be Natsume Hyuuga. I have heard a lot about you from the other teachers, how you're a very special student. Plus, it seems you and I share the same Alice…fire. This might be quite interesting…what do you think?"

"Why do you care?" was the heated reply. "You're just the substitute teacher, and a show-off."

"Sounds like someone has a little bit of a smart mouth," drawled Roy, actually grinning instead of getting mad. "You remind me of someone back where I come from. Anyhow, if you make one more crack like that…let's just say I don't give any special considerations to anyone, whether they're no-stars or special stars like you." He calmly made a show of reaching out towards his record book.

Ruka Nogi, the boy with the rabbit, reached out and gripped Natsume's shoulder. But Natsume was already on his feet, his right hand curled into a fist and engulfed in crackling flames. Some of the boys next to him smiled and pumped their fists into the air, while the other students gasped.

"Natsume, don't!" Mikan whined.

"Be careful, Mr. Mustang!" warned Yuu. "You and Natsume have the same Alice…"

Roy nodded. "Yes…I'll be careful." With his hands resting on the desk behind him, he discreetly touched the transmutation circle on his right glove. Suddenly, Natsume's fire unraveled itself like the skin of an apple being peeled away, much to his and the rest of the class' amazement – and in Natsume's case – annoyance. The fire turned into a bolt that hurtled straight for the open window, causing some of the children to duck, even though it sailed closer to the ceiling than their heads.

Then everyone heard a popping sound as the bolt exploded in the air, far enough to not cause any damage to the building or even the window frame. Somewhere outside, a voice exploded as well.

"Mustang, you moron, what was that for?! You could've poked someone's eye out!"

"But I didn't, right, Jinno?" Roy called back, not leaving his place in front of his table. Judging from his tone, he probably didn't care too much if Jinno got caught in the crossfire.

"_That's not the point_!"

"Just be glad you or anyone else wasn't hurt," said Roy calmly. "Look, you're disturbing the peace with all that shouting you're doing. Nobody got hurt; that's what's important."

After they heard Jinno's stomping footsteps die away, Elementary Class B's substitute teacher turned back to Natsume, who was seething with anger and breathing hard, but was no longer summoning any fireballs.

"You – "

"Now, we won't be having any more trouble, won't we? If you try to make any more fire, I can always manipulate your Alice with mine, and I can spend the entire day doing it too. And not only would that get boring after a while, you would waste your energy on something as pointless as trying to intimidate me. I've seen scarier things than boys like you playing with fire."

Natsume pointed a defiant finger at Roy, desperately searching for something to say, but decided against it and plopped back into his seat, staring at his table with his arms crossed and his brows furrowed.

All the students were probably thinking the same thing – Natsume had often alarmed and frightened inexperienced substitute teachers – and other teachers, and other people in general – with his Alice and his attitude, and only very few could manage to hold him down, including Narumi and the mysterious Dangerous Type Class handler, Persona. But now there was someone else who could keep him in line, and all he had to do was control Natsume's Alice with his own without harming the boy in any way. Plus, he was the first substitute teacher who showed no fear in facing Natsume.

Still, Mikan was concerned about Natsume, and kept glancing behind her to see if he was all right. He was.

"He's fine, Mikan. Don't worry so much," said Hotaru.

"I know, but you know…his Alice…"

"Now that that's over, I think it's about time we got down to the real lesson," Roy began, as though Natsume hadn't interfered. "To start with, I want each of you to use the remaining time to write me an essay, just so I can evaluate your spelling and grammar skills and so I know how to go about teaching you. Write an essay – a single paragraph with around five to ten sentences should do nicely – about what you think of me burning Mr. Jinno's lightning rod to a crisp. Yes, I did that not too long ago, and I think he's still mad at me for doing that."

A ripple of laughter and soft conversation spread throughout the class, like a stone dropped into a very still pond.

"Really?" asked Mikan, all sympathy for Natsume seemingly forgotten.

"And if you all do well, I might just tell you the story," said Roy shrewdly, twirling a gold-painted pen absently. As sunlight streamed through the window, the initials R.M. and a tiny wisp of flame engraved onto its body in the same script he had used to "write" his name with fire could be vaguely read.

"I can always read his mind and tell it to you," whispered Yome Kokoro, nudging Mikan slyly.

But he got no reply from her and decided to start his own essay, as she was already scribbling away on a piece of paper with a yellow chick pen. Everyone else was just as eager to submit a good essay – with obvious exceptions. Still, Natsume got a nudge of his own from Ruka, whose rabbit was perched on the table watching his pen fly across his paper. The nudge was a gesture very akin to, "Better do it, Mr. Mustang means business."

And indeed, Mr. Mustang did mean business, even though he had never taught a roomful of children, let alone a roomful of children with special innate abilities, before.

---

_Yes, I did finish my homework tonight. XD _


	3. Our Superior's a Substitute Teacher

After the last essay on Roy incinerating Jinno's wand was handed in, the substitute teacher left with a little smirk and a wave. But even before he could step out of the room, he could already hear snatches and snippets of conversation cropping up, about a range of topics such as Hotaru's new invention, Natsume's foiled attempt at scaring Roy with his Alice, and most of all, Roy himself and the first piece of work he gave the class.

"So, Hotaru, what did you write in your essay?" asked Mikan, putting away her pen and the rest of her paper.

"I wrote about how I can invent something that can also set Mr. Jinno's lightning rod on fire," answered the inventor. "It's pretty easy. I can even make it look like Mr. Mustang himself."

"I thought it was funny," Yuu offered. "I wish I could've seen the look on Mr. Jinno's face. No wonder he was really mad when Mr. Mustang made Natsume's fireball explode outside, even though nobody was hurt. What about you, Mikan? What did you write for Mr. Mustang's essay?"

Mikan grinned. "I hope he likes mine – I also told him it was funny. If I were there, I would really be laughing and that Mr. Jinno should've been faster if he wanted to save his wand and – "

"So, you think Mustang destroying such a perfectly good wand and burning my hand is downright hilarious, eh, Miss Sakura?"

Nearly jumping out of her seat, she turned and saw their math teacher standing beside her, his arms crossed. He had a new wand, and it crackled menacingly with electricity, the sound not exactly mingling perfectly with the croak of the frog on his shoulder. Hotaru and Yuu traded looks as Mikan's proud smile turned into a sheepish expression. Amused whispers and stifled laughs provided the background, and they had already begun the moment Jinno took his first step into the classroom.

"Uh…I'm sorry, sir…we were just discussing our essays…umm…"

Jinno scowled. "One more word and you'll be sorry you heard the story!"

"But we haven't even heard the story!" Mikan couldn't help saying. "Mr. Mustang said that if we wanted to hear how he did it, we should write a nice essay about what we think of it…"

"It wasn't Mikan's fault!" Yuu added quickly.

"Yes, apparently so," answered Jinno, deflating slightly. "I'll have to have a word with your substitute teacher about how he conducts his classes later. And anyone else who laughs or brings up the subject…"

He turned around to face the rest of the class, holding his wand high as it crackled even more furiously. Elementary Class B clammed up instantly, watching nervously as Jinno took his place in front, muttering under his breath as he fixed up his things and got the discussion started.

"Now, Miss Sakura, will you please come up to the board and show us how you got the answer to the first problem in the homework I gave you yesterday? And yes, after that, I would like Mr. Hyuuga to give us his solution to problem number two…"

---

When Jinno returned to the faculty room that day, he found it abuzz, with almost every teacher clustered around one particular table. At first, he thought something had happened to Narumi and it was Serina they were surrounding, but then he saw her not too far away, gazing intently at her crystal ball. When she saw Jinno, she simply gave him a small smile, but it slipped a notch and nearly gave way to laughter.

"Narumi's doing just fine," she said in a bid to keep herself from giggling. "But the other teachers…"

"Let me guess," he muttered irately.

"Hey, Jinno, you should see these essays the kids from Elementary Class B are writing about you!" called Misaki, the science teacher. He was leafing through several pieces of pad paper. "First, I don't have to worry about Narumi stealing my bean whips for a while, and now this…these kids are good!"

"I like Mikan's essay the best, but that's just me," said Noda, the Special Ability Class moderator, more to himself than to the other teachers. "She thinks it must've been a funny scene, especially if you've been hopping up and down screaming that your hand was on fire…"

Jinno's eyes burned in such a way that it almost rivaled Roy's alchemy and Natsume's Alice. "What was that _bastard_ thinking, telling his class about – "

"You called?" Jinno jumped as someone tapped him on the shoulder. "I need those essays; I'm not even done checking them yet. Do_ you_ want to read them, Jinno?"

Narrowing his eyes, he whipped around and jabbed a hard finger shaking with suppressed antagonism into Roy's flaming tie. "I still don't think _you_ deserve to be a teacher in this Academy, even if your _alchemy_ passes for an Alice. This is just like the time we let Mikan Sakura into the Academy…except that at least _she_ turned out to have an Alice after all, even though she causes a lot of trouble…"

Roy raised his eyebrows. "I don't know; she seems like a nice kid. Very curious and outspoken, I might add. And weren't you in dire need of a substitute teacher? Well, you got one now. Would you rather have me, who can still somehow pass for an Alice or someone who has no special ability whatsoever…or maybe no sub at all? After all, the higher-ups in this Academy let me teach, and there's nothing you can do about that."

He casually passed by Jinno, punching the math teacher's shoulder lightly. Jinno gritted his teeth as he watched Roy approach the group of teachers, take back his sheaf of essays and sit down at his desk. The avid readers of Elementary Class B's essays scattered and went back to their work.

"He's got you there, you know," said Noda, flickering before Jinno. "Oh…looks like I'll be off again." Noda's profile started to blur, as though he was passing through smoke, before he disappeared completely, to time-travel against his will again.

Serina glanced up from her crystal ball as Jinno walked past her.

"Don't let him get to you. He'll only be here for a while. Besides, I think Narumi's class likes him a lot."

"Well, good for them," was the gruff reply, punctuated by a frog's croak.

---

_Eastern Headquarters, Amestris_

_4:52 PM_

"I do hope wherever the Colonel is, he's enjoying his day off," said Master Sergeant Kain Fuery, absently thumbing through the pages of a telephone assembly manual.

"At least he's not here to snag any pretty girls I might happen to have my eye on," said Second Lieutenant Jean Havoc, reading a letter and sighing deeply. "Yes, I've got a date with Grace tomorrow! Hah, and there's nothing he can do about it, 'cause I snagged her first!"

Warrant Officer Vato Falman and Second Lieutenant Heymans Breda cheered for Havoc, for lack of anything better to do.

"Good for you, sir."

"So, where'll you be taking Grace tomorrow, eh?"

"I don't know…there's this new coffee shop not too far away from here. She hinted once that she wanted to try out their new cakes…"

While the men sat around and talked, finally free of the dreaded horror that was paperwork, First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye sat at Roy's usual desk, taking over for him and neatly arranging some of his important documents. As always, she looked serious and stoic, whenever she was doing business, and didn't even bother contributing any thoughts about their superior's day off or Havoc's date.

And then the phone rang. Riza instinctively reached out for it, and already knew exactly what to say.

"Eastern Headquarters, Lieutenant Hawkeye speaking."

Everyone else waited as she listened to whoever was on the other line. It was so silent that they could hear his voice, loud and clear.

"Lieutenant Hawkeye?"

"Sir!" Havoc, Breda, Falman and Fuery chorused along with her.

---

_Faculty Office, Alice Academy_

_4:53 PM_

"Listen…expect a letter from the Alice Academy in a few days. I'm currently there – "

"But where is this Alice Academy, sir?" Riza's voice floated into Roy's ear. "Why would they send us a letter?"

"It's in a huge city to the East. Anyhow, the Academy's behind a large metal gate, and there's a sign outside it, so you can't miss it," he replied, cradling the receiver with his free left hand as he checked essay after essay with gold pen, signing each paper as he did so. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to call earlier, Hawkeye. I'll be staying here for about a month – "

"A month?!"

He blanched at how her tone suddenly rose and became louder.

"Colonel Mustang, what will you be doing in a school for such a long time? Do you have some kind of business there?"

"Actually…in a way, yes."

"Like what?"

Roy took a deep breath. He didn't know another way to break it to her and to his comrades in the military. "Hawkeye…I'm a substitute teacher. I'm teaching English and handling an elementary class. And I'll be doing this for a few weeks until the real homeroom adviser comes back from wherever he's going, and the resident English teacher is also busy…"

A pregnant pause ensued, and all he could hear for the moment was his pen scrawling a comment on Yuu Tobita's paper. He knew they wouldn't believe him…they would think he was pulling their leg. After all, what would he, Colonel Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist, be doing in the Alice Academy, teaching children with special powers? Of course, Narumi had long answered that question for him…

"Sir," Riza's voice returned steadily, "did you just say you were a substitute teacher?"

"Yes, Lieutenant, I did. It's a long story. Anyway, they just sent a letter to Eastern Headquarters to inform you of my whereabouts and so you don't start doing stupid things like sending out search parties." Roy didn't see his subordinate at the other end narrow her eyes and scowl briefly. I don't know what the rest of the military would think if they heard I became a teacher, at least for a while, so maybe it would be best to keep it under wraps. I had them address the message to you."

"How will we keep this secret?"

"Try to make up some other excuse…something believable. Maybe I went to this far-flung town in the East to visit a sick aunt, something like that. I promise I'll be back as soon as my short teaching career is over. And I'll keep in touch."

There was a second's silence before Riza answered, "Yes, sir. Good luck with your…classes, sir. Goodbye."

"Thank you, Hawkeye. See you and good luck as well."

The line went dead after a click, and Roy also put down the phone, resuming his work when he realized that he had stopped and almost created a huge ink blot on Yuu's paper. But thankfully it was far from the essay.

"Who was that?" asked Noda, appearing out of nowhere in front of Roy's table.

"My subordinate," said Roy, checking Ruka's work next. "I told her that the Academy's sending them a letter and all that, so they don't have to worry."

"Her?" repeated Noda, smirking. But he was gone in a flash – literally – when he got a glowering look from the substitute teacher, who was trying to get back to work.

But Serina didn't help when she piped up, "Do you have a girlfriend, Mr. Mustang?"

Roy would have made a huge, red, zigzagging mark on Ruka's paper, if he hadn't controlled himself in time. "What makes you think that?" he asked abruptly. "No, I don't. She's my subordinate."

"I see," said Serina, turning back to her crystal ball and seemingly conversing with it. "Ah, there you are, Narumi…for a second there I thought I lost you."

_Subordinate_, Roy repeated to himself. _But Hawkeye really is my subordinate…isn't she? Then why doesn't it sound…right?_

Clearing his mind, he shook his head, concentrating on essays to be checked. When he was done with Ruka's and was absolutely sure he didn't end up messing it up, he reached out for the next paper, and had to smile at the name written on top.

_Natsume Hyuuga._

_This should be interesting. _

Roy leaned back in his chair and started to read the essay, with a smug grin and his forehead furrowing in deep thought.

His subordinates would have to believe him when he said he had become a teacher if they saw him now.

---

Back at Eastern Headquarters, Riza had just put the receiver back in its cradle, but she still hadn't taken her hand off it. Instead, she kept staring at the phone with her reddish-brown eyes, which were more red than brown.

"Lieutenant?" Fuery piped up.

"Is it true – the Colonel's a teacher?" Breda asked, scratching his head. "How?"

"What?" Havoc burst out. He snapped out of his reverie and put Grace's letter back into its envelope.

"Why?" Falman traded looks with his comrades.

Riza frowned thoughtfully. Even she didn't know the answers to those questions. And she couldn't help but feel a little worried for her superior. What would a man like him be doing in an academy, filling in as a homeroom and English teacher? And how would he handle it? Roy didn't sound at all hassled, or frantic, or even anxious…just a bit busy. Perhaps she shouldn't be worrying too much, after all, Roy could take care of himself, so long as his plans weren't _dampened_…

The small pun made her feel a bit better, but not completely.

"Worried about Colonel Mustang, huh?" said Havoc, taking out a lighter from his pocket and igniting a cigarette. "I don't think you have anything to worry about."

She shrugged. "I think I'll get back to fixing these files he wasn't able to alphabetize," said Riza, quickly reaching out for the documents she had left on the desk when she answered the phone. "Then maybe we can talk about this later."

"Mustang…a teacher," said Falman with a chuckle, striking up a new discussion as they heard the rummaging of papers and the opening of file cabinets. "What do you guys think? Is it really that far-fetched?"

"Are you kidding? I just can't imagine him in front of kids, let alone teaching something besides alchemy. Do you think the Alice Academy's a school for children learning alchemy?" asked Fuery, scanning the index of the book he was browsing.

Breda shrugged. "I don't even know if they practice alchemy that far in the east. Although I've heard a bit about this Alice Academy…I highly doubt they teach alchemy there. Then again, we don't know too much about it…"

"Either way…I'll only believe it when I see Mustang grading essays, telling off naughty brats, and talking to students with my own eyes." Havoc nodded, exhaling a bit of smoke. "Hey, Hawkeye, are you even sure that's Mustang on the phone? And what if he's talking in code?"

"If he was talking in code, I would have understood the underlying message by now," said Riza. "And yes, I'm sure that was the Colonel. Although I have to admit that I sort of agree with you, Lieutenant Havoc…"

Her voice trailed off, and once again their office was bathed in silence. That is, until Breda broke it.

"Seriously though, how would Mustang become a teacher?"

"Who knows?" Falman answered his question with a question. "We don't know how the Alice Academy operates, let alone chooses its teachers. They might actually make him a teacher."

"Still, it just sounds too weird," said Fuery, closing his book with a snap.

"I know," agreed Havoc.

---

…_NO CLASSES TOMORROW! FWEE! XD I love my college schedule. Sorry though if I rushed this…it's already late where I live. _


	4. The Alice Academy's New Celebrity

"Good evening, Mr. Mustang. I do hope you enjoy your stay here in the Alice Academy. If you need anything, you can always give me a ring! I know where the extra pillows are, the best place to brew a cup of coffee, the best blankets…all you have to do is call me!"

"Right," muttered Roy, staring at the room he had been given in the faculty section of the Alice Academy dormitories. It was spacious, and obviously well-stocked with everything he would need during his few weeks' stay, but the prospect of actually spending several nights and more in the Academy remained just a little disconcerting to him, especially as the fact that he was a substitute teacher was still sinking in.

And nobody mentioned that the caretaker wasn't even human, but a moving bucket of nuts and bolts.

"Now then, is there anything you need right now?"

"No, no…you can just leave." Roy waved the robot away, and she – well, the voice sounded rather high and feminine – rolled away, leaving him to shut the door of his quarters behind him and flop onto the huge, four-poster bed, staring up at the ceiling. With a swift gesture, he undid his tie and tossed it unceremoniously on the side table, next to the mushroom-shaped lamp.

_So…I really am a teacher at the Alice Academy, at least for a few weeks, huh?_

And even though it had only been his first day on the job, Roy was already bummed out. After he had finished checking the essays of Elementary Class B – not to mention the essays of the other elementary classes he would handle as well – for a moment all the hastily-scrawled sentences and red marks and comments were etched into his vision. It was like paperwork, all right, but he had to admit, it was much more fascinating reading each child's essay and knowing that each one of these students had a certain special ability.

Of course, many of their abilities often surprised him and left him baffled, especially as he walked through the corridors of the Academy and passed by different kids (and teachers) with different powers.

_Ah, I'll get used to it pretty soon. After all, I've only been here for a day. _

Stifling a yawn, Roy pulled himself off the bed and decided to get ready for a night's well-deserved rest. He hadn't even taken his shoes off yet. But before he could do anything else, the phone next to the lamp on the bedside table started to ring, the noise so piercing in the quiet solitude of his room that when he picked up the phone, he started wondering how he could send his alchemy through the line to burn the ear of whoever would call this late at night.

"Hello, Roy Mustang speaking…substitute English teacher and homeroom teacher for Elementary Class B, Alice Academy. How may I help you?"

"There you are, Roy!"

Somehow, Roy already knew he would call – Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes, who worked in the investigations division of Amestris military, and also his best friend.

"You picked a wrong time to call, Maes. I was about to have a good night's sleep. Don't tell me you're burning the midnight oil again. And how did you know what number to use?"

"Oh, I have my sources. You know me and my work. And you know this desk job isn't a piece of cake," was the reply on the other end. "I thought I'd like to know how you're doing, teaching at this so-called academy. Lieutenant Hawkeye was kind enough to inform me, and I would just like to know – can I enroll my daughter there? I mean, if that's a school for special, gifted students, Elysia's special and gifted, she'd fit in just fine!"

Roy rolled his eyes. "She'd have to be an Alice."

"What? They only teach students named Alice there? Hmph, what kind of school is that?"

"No, I meant she has to have a special ability of some sort. They call them Alices here – that's why it was called _Alice_ Academy. And apparently my alchemy passed off as an Alice, so they hired me to fill in for a guy called Narumi. It's a long story, actually…"

"I have time!" Hughes chirped merrily on the phone. Roy wanted to know how his best friend managed to stay up and alert even past ten in the evening. "Besides, these are just some stupid court files…not even due tomorrow but once they're out of my hair, I can spend the coming weekend with my wife and kid!"

"Then shouldn't you be starting work now instead of wasting your time talking to me?"

Hughes laughed. "It's called multitasking, Roy. So, how did the school take you, anyway?"

"This was supposed to be my day off, right? Apparently, they had been looking for a teacher for a long time…so when they saw me and how I could do alchemy, they hired me to replace Narumi, who supposedly had important business elsewhere, as the homeroom teacher of Elementary Class B. Then there's Serina Yamada, who teaches English. I'm also filling in for her because she has to watch Narumi. I've just had my first few classes today…"

"How do you like them so far?"

With a grin, Roy replied, "Oh…it's pretty interesting. You don't see kids like these everyday. Although I did have some trouble with a few…but that's to be expected."

"I see. All right then, I guess you need a good night's rest for tomorrow. It wouldn't make a good impression to start falling asleep while teaching, right?"

"Finally, you're speaking my language, Maes. Good night."

"Good luck, Roy. Of course, if you need any help handling children, you know who to call!"

"Yes, yes…I have to go to bed now. Get back to work. That's an order."

There was a chuckle, and then Hughes hung up.

---

_From: The Alice Academy Administration_

_To: The Amestris Military, Eastern Division_

_To whom it may concern,_

_We would like to inform you that Colonel Roy Mustang will be spending at least the next four weeks teaching here in the Alice Academy, a school for gifted students. We have been looking for a substitute teacher who would be willing to pitch in and handle Elementary Class B and teach English to all elementary classes for a long time, and we were lucky to find a man like Mr. Mustang. _

_Please understand. The Academy thanks you for your cooperation in assisting the succeeding generation. _

_We will keep in touch, and we hope you do the same. If you have any further comments or queries, feel free to ask. _

The letter from the Alice Academy was on a table, with five men clustering around to read it, and one woman standing by to retrieve the message after everyone had read it.

"Well…it looks pretty official," said Falman, nodding. "That must be their seal…and the signatures from the administration and the student representatives. It must be one ritzy school, this Alice Academy, especially as they only take in 'gifted' students…although I've never heard too much about it until now."

"But Elysia's gifted, wouldn't you agree?" asked Hughes excitedly, suddenly shoving a photo of said girl under Falman's nose. "Look at her, isn't she cute when she draws like that? I think she's drawing a picture of me and Gracia, what do you think?"

The warrant officer was saved from hazarding an answer when Riza suddenly said, "A month…anything could happen to the Colonel during that time." Her face was contorted into an expression of concern. "Should we go see how he's doing?"

"Don't be so worried, Hawkeye," Hughes assured her. "Roy can handle anything, even teaching young geniuses in a prestigious school!" He put an arm around her and steered her towards the empty desk that was usually occupied by their superior, well out of earshot.

Then he whispered, "I talked to him last night. He sounded pretty fine to me. You already know that he was only discovered during his day off, right? And the Academy was desperate for a substitute teacher. Still, why would they be that desperate, fishing random people from the streets to fill in for someone else temporarily? And could it be a coincidence that they happened to fish out the Flame Alchemist?"

"Unless the Alice Academy is much more than a school for special students," Riza practically took the words out of his mouth.

"Hmm…maybe, but whatever happens, I think Roy can take it. And he'll tell us when something's amiss."

"I highly doubt that, sir," she answered tersely. "You know the Colonel."

"Just like you – like the back of my hand," said the Lieutenant Colonel, leaning against the wall.

Riza sighed. "Still…"

"Maybe we can drop by for a visit…but not now," suggested Hughes. "Allow him to adjust to his new work and environment…you know, get into the teaching vibe, something like that…"

"I guess so, Lieutenant Colonel. You're right."

"Like I said, don't worry so much about Roy. And he probably wouldn't like it if he finds out you're not concentrating on _your_ work because you're too busy mulling over what he's doing at the moment."

Riza managed a small smile. "Thank you, sir. You do have a point." She gently drew back the curtains shrouding the window behind them, and squinted as the beaming morning sunlight streamed into the office, seemingly promising an equally bright prospect for her and the military, and Roy.

---

"Anyway, Jinno was pointing his wand at me, and I could see the lightning forming on it. He would have charred me, if I hadn't charred his wand first. Unfortunately, he wasn't fast enough, and not only did I reduce one of his lightning rods to ashes with my Alice, I ended up burning his hand a bit…"

"Oh dear!" gasped Mikan. "Was he all right?"

Roy grinned. "They were only first-degree burns, Mikan. Just run them under some cold water, I told him, but of course, he was still burning mad after that…"

The students of Elementary Class B were all ears as their substitute teacher used the first few minutes of their class to tell the full (and somewhat sensationalized) story of how he had made a fool out of Jinno, as he had been satisfied with all their essays. Of course, Roy never told them who got the highest mark or the lowest mark, but simply said just about everyone did a very good job with an approving grin that made some – many, actually – girls' eyes sparkle and excited squeals bubble in their throats. Not even Sumire, the self-proclaimed president of the Natsume and Ruka fan club, was immune to Roy's natural charms.

Needless to say, one boy was definitely not listening, his nose buried in a graphic novel. His seatmate shook his head disapprovingly, but was ignored.

"Natsume," Ruka warned. "He could use his Alice on you again…"

"Like I care," was the gruff answer, punctuated by a turn of the pages. "It doesn't hurt, anyway."

Ruka didn't know whether Roy knew that Natsume wasn't listening, but had this feeling that he had more tricks up his sleeve in case he decided that Natsume was being a pain in the neck again.

"So," Roy concluded his story, "I kept my promise. Did you like the story?"

The room echoed with mumbled and proclaimed affirmations alike, accompanied by a few bouts of laughter and some comments. Mikan in particular was eagerly sharing her reactions to a rather uninterested Hotaru, who made gestures as though resisting the urge to whip out her idiot gun.

Mikan had no idea that someone at the very back of the class was watching her.

"She likes him too, doesn't she?" muttered Natsume, finally putting down his book.

"Yeah, I think Mikan's becoming rather fond of Mr. Mustang," said Ruka, sounding just a little bit jealous.

His friend grunted, crossing his arms. "What's there to like about him, anyway? He's a show-off, a bastard, and – "

"Now I want you all to bring out a single sheet of paper each, and a pen."

"What for, sir?" asked Yuu.

"Actually, I told you that story so I can test you on your listening skills," said Roy, picking up a notebook from his desk and his gold pen. "I will ask you five questions, and you must answer them in complete sentences. After this, we'll officially start our first lesson. I hope you've all been listening well – it's a pretty simple story, so I bet a lot of you, if not all, will be getting a hundred percent."

"Like I said, he's a damn bastard," whispered Natsume to Ruka.

But Natsume wasn't looking at Roy – he was surveying Mikan up front, eagerly jabbering away to Hotaru as they got everything they needed for the test. When her materials were laid out carefully on her table, Mikan eagerly raised a hand and waved it about, catching Roy's attention. She seemed to be saying something to him, asking a question, most probably, and he said something else in turn to answer whatever was on her mind. When he walked away to watch the rest of the students, Mikan instantly turned back to Hotaru, smiling brightly and whispering something to her.

"A damn bastard," Natsume stressed.

"Okay, everyone, here's your first question. What was the color of the cloak I was wearing while I was walking outside the Alice Academy, before Mr. Narumi found me?"

Ruka said nothing to Natsume's further comment, as the next test had begun. The room was silent in between questions, filled only with the scratching and tapping of pens and pencils, padding of anxious feet, and rustling of paper, among other tiny noises.

---

"He's only been our teacher for two days, but I like him already! He's really nice, sort of like Mr. Narumi, and he has the same Alice as Natsume!"

Misaki Harada was listening closely to Mikan's stories, along with other girls from the middle school and also in the Special Ability class. She was perched on a table, while her doppelganger occupied the chair – or was it the other way around?

"This Mr. Mustang guy sounds like a good man," the Misaki on the table commented. "Isn't he the tall black-haired one, with eyes that look black but are actually a very dark blue?"

"Yup, he's the one," answered one girl, twirling a lock of her brown hair dreamily. "Have you seen him? He's really good-looking. Mikan's pretty lucky to have him for a teacher…I wish I could see how he teaches. Plus, I love his tie, the one that looks like it's on fire. He's got good fashion sense. Maybe I could somehow drop by during one of your classes…"

"Hey, don't you make a move on him, he's mine!" another girl said suddenly, standing up and pointing at the one who had just spoken. "Even his name has a nice ring to it…Roy Mustang…"

"What do you mean, he's yours?"

The two Misakis traded a look and sighed together. Mikan glanced at them and shrugged as the girls started arguing among themselves. Tsubasa Andou walked towards them and leaned against a nearby table, watching Mikan and Misaki.

"What's going on?" asked Tsubasa. "Oh, wait, stupid question. I bet this is about the teacher subbing for Narumi back at the elementary school."

"How did you guess?" Misaki and her doppelganger chorused.

"Hey, Tsubasa!" Mikan greeted him cheerily. "You've heard of Mr. Mustang already? He's our homeroom and English teacher!"

He nodded, ruffling her hair and rolling his eyes. "Yup, news about him spreads like wildfire, especially among our classmates, huh? After only a couple of days, even. Next thing you know, there'll probably be a Roy Mustang fan club…"

"That's a good idea!" a girl with long red hair and an unusually high voice interrupted. She turned back to her friends and declared, "I hereby declare myself the official president of the Roy Mustang fan club!"

"Damn it, no fair! We need an election!"

"Election, schmelection!"

"Hey, everyone!"

The girls instantly stopped fighting, several hands stretched out to pull each other's hair, or maybe eager to start a catfight. Noda, the handler of the Special Ability class, had just come in, but there was someone lurking behind him…

"Hi, Mr. Mustang!" crowed Mikan, jumping up and down and waving. "What are you doing here?"

"Hello there, Mikan," Roy gave a little wave back. His other arm was full of books and folders.

Noda smiled. "Mr. Mustang was kind enough to help me out with a few errands before I got here. That's why I'm a bit late." He turned to Roy, taking his load. "So, Mikan's one of your students?"

"Yes, she is. Anyway, I have to leave for my English class with Elementary Class A. See you."

"And Mr. Jinno said he was a pain – I don't think so," said Noda, more to himself than anyone else.

While he walked up to the front of the class and got things ready, the girls started whispering excitedly again about creating a Roy Mustang fan club, and how he had graced them with his presence, even for just a few minutes. Misaki's doppelganger was gone, and now she traded a look with Tsubasa. That left Mikan to brace herself as the fangirls started assaulting her with questions about her substitute teacher and random ravings about him.

"So, how does he teach?"

"You're _soooooooo_ lucky!"

"Did he say if he has a girlfriend?"

"I'm still gonna be president of the club, right?"

"Dream on!"

"He's all right, his classes have been fun so far," said Mikan, trying her best to answer each query. "Well…"

But she didn't have to answer them all, as Noda got everyone's attention again. "I see Mr. Mustang already has fans even after only two days of teaching?"

"Tell me about it," said Misaki and Tsubasa simultaneously, and grinned at each other.

"Well, you'll have a lot of time to discuss him later on. But first, we'll have a little discussion and more practicing of our Alices…"

Mikan raised her hand. "Mr. Noda, do you think if I work hard, I can nullify Mr. Mustang's Alice?"

Noda chuckled. "I've seen his Alice, and it's pretty powerful – maybe even more so than Natsume Hyuuga's. Hmm…maybe, but for now, let's start small. But why would you want to nullify his Alice?"

For a moment, she thought of Roy's Alice, which was indeed impressive. But then she also thought of Natsume. Would he truly be all right? And what if he tried to create fire again and Roy rendered it useless yet again? Would it affect Natsume's life span? Hotaru, Yuu and Ruka had reassured her that Natsume would be fine, but she couldn't be so sure…and somehow, she had this feeling that she may have to learn how to nullify Roy's Alice.

"I don't know…I guess I just thought of it," said Mikan with a shrug.

"Like I said, it's better if we start from the bottom and work our way to the top. Now then, I think it's about time we begin our class, because I might suddenly disappear again…"


	5. Through Central Town and Time

Eventually, Roy's first week as a substitute teacher at the Alice Academy culminated in a weekend visit to Central Town. At first, he originally had no plans during that weekend except to relax and unwind, until his class – actually, mostly Mikan, backed up by Yuu, Ruka and Yome, and a reluctant Hotaru – finally urged him to join them on their trip to the little town within the Academy that boasted a seemingly endless selection of Alice-based wares and attractions. Then again, he could always relax and unwind while strolling through the place, escorted by a horde of excited students.

So now, one sunny Saturday, a group of elementary kids breezed through Central Town, dragging him along with them as they wove through its busy streets.

"Look, they sell talking fruits there!"

"That's my favorite place; the shopkeeper there is really nice!"

"C'mon, Mr. Mustang, you have to see this!"

Two boys brought up the rear, walking briskly to keep up with everyone else, with a much younger boy with them.

"Are you all right, Natsume?" asked Ruka, his rabbit taking in all the sights and sounds from the safety of its master's arms.

Natsume shrugged. He had one hand in his pocket, while the other clutched the little boy's. Like Ruka's rabbit, Youichi Hijiri's grayish-green eyes darted around Central Town, looking at everything but staying very close to Natsume. And like Natsume, Youichi seemed to watch Roy closely, like pretty much everyone around Central Town, who were whispering avidly about the new teacher as he passed by. The women working the shops would suddenly stop whatever they were doing to stare after him and sigh dreamily till they realized they still had work to do.

"I don't trust him," muttered Natsume. It was pretty obvious to Youichi and Ruka who he meant.

Meanwhile, up front, Mikan was running as fast as she could and was pulling Roy along as Yuu, Hotaru, Yome, Anna Umenomiya and Nonoko Ogasawara jogged alongside them.

"So, Mikan, where are we going this time? Slow down; why are you so excited?"

"She's going to the stall where they sell Fluff Puffs," said Hotaru.

"I've got the allowance of a one-star student now! I can buy a box of Fluff Puffs!" crowed Mikan.

"Careful, you might end up pulling Mr. Mustang's arm off," said Yome jokingly.

The group stopped in front of a huge, colorful stall that was brimming with customers. The shopkeeper on duty that day, a young woman with long blond curls restrained by a bandanna dotted with yellow stars and snowy-white Fluff Puffs, glanced up over the crowd, her blue eyes sparkling. Judging from the look on her face, she was hoping that everyone would quickly take their Fluff Puffs and leave so she could have a better view of the Alice Academy's substitute teacher.

Roy knew it, too. He strode through the dissipating, satisfied customers, led by Mikan. Despite being surrounded by his students, he rested his elbow on the counter and ran a hand through his hair. Whether he meant to fix it or simply make it messier, the woman smiled widely at this gesture, barely taking her eyes off him – until the sound of Rabbits slapped onto the counter snapped her out of it, along with Mikan's "I'd like to buy one box of Fluff Puffs, please!"

"Oh…all right," said the shopkeeper, still dazzled and glancing over her shoulder as she served Mikan. "You're the new teacher – Roy Mustang, right?"

"How did you know?" he drawled, obviously starting to flirt. "And you are…?"

"I'm Kaira," was the dreamy reply. Kaira handed Mikan her box of Fluff Puffs and her change. "Are they all your students?"

"Yes, I teach English. And I'm also the homeroom teacher for Elementary Class B."

Kaira nodded, shyly tucking a stray strand of her hair behind her ear. "English was my favorite subject when I studied at the Academy."

"Really?" Roy grinned. "You must have been a really good – "

"C'mon, Mr. Mustang, you have to try a Fluff Puff!" Mikan started tugging at his sleeve. "They're really, really good!"

"Well…I have to be going now…Kaira, right? Maybe the next time we're in Central Town, I'll see you again."

The shopkeeper nodded again, waving as Roy stepped aside for the other customers, and they chose a bench not too far away from the stall to sit down. Mikan quickly opened her box of Fluff Puffs, and took out one snow-white piece. It looked like a cross between a marshmallow and cotton candy, and Youichi was already beside her, reaching out for the Fluff Puff. She gave it to him, and dug into the box for another one.

"Here – "

But she and the other students started to laugh when they saw Youichi thrust the treat towards Roy after climbing into the spot between him and Mikan.

"I guess he knows you're a Dangerous Type, just like him and Natsume," noted Yuu.

"Thank you," said Roy, ruffling Youichi's hair and taking the Fluff Puff, while Mikan passed the box around to everyone.

"Wait a minute," said Yuu suddenly, his Fluff Puff already halfway to his mouth. "Do you hear something?"

Yome traded a look with Mikan, who traded a look with Hotaru, who did the same thing with Anna, and so on.

"It sounds like…screaming," said Ruka, scratching his head and glancing down at his rabbit. "Is anything happening?" He got several shrugs from the group.

---

"_Kyaaaaaaaaaa!"_

Just behind the Fluff Puff stall, a gaggle of giggling middle school girls crouched, clutching cameras as they snapped photo after photo of the group seated on the bench. The girls squealed among themselves, quivering with delight.

"He's so cute!"

"Not cute – he's _hot_! Especially when that little kid gave him the Fluff Puff…awwww!"

"Aw, you ruined my shot! Your head was in the way!"

"What the hell are you doing way back here?"

The girls suddenly turned around and saw Misaki standing over them, flanked by Tsubasa.

"Don't tell me – you actually started a fan club," said Misaki, sighing. "And what if he finds out you've all been _spying_ on him and _taking pictures_ of him with his students? Seriously, you're taking things too far."

Tsubasa nudged her and whispered, "You know, that can be arranged. All I have to do is control their shadows so they somehow _accidentally_ walk up to Mustang and – "

"Forget it." She shook her head.

One of the girls stood up and faced Misaki. "You're just jealous because we didn't let you join the Roy Mustang fan club."

Misaki rolled her eyes. "Why would _I_ want to join your silly club?"

"Maybe you don't want to because you've already got Tsubasa. I mean, don't you two make such a cute couple?"

Patches of furious scarlet blossomed on Misaki's cheeks. "What? Whatever. Come on, Tsubasa; let's just get out of here. Anyway, we won't tell Mr. Mustang you've been watching him. So don't worry about that."

He couldn't resist chuckling as she pulled him away and they left the fangirls to keep fangirling.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing, nothing, Misaki…"

---

"Here's a Fluff Puff for you, Natsume."

While Misaki and Tsubasa confronted and chided the clandestine members of the unofficial Roy Mustang fan club, Roy and his students remained oblivious to their surveillance. The box, devoid of all but one Fluff Puff, was now in Natsume's lap. He sat the farthest from Roy, his arms draped on top of the bench's left armrest and slowly reached for the last Fluff Puff, barely looking up at Mikan, who was standing before him and smiling. But her smile flickered ever so slightly.

"Is there anything wrong?"

"Nothing. Quit worrying," he muttered, waving her away so he could eat in peace. But before she could run off and rejoin the other students, Natsume quickly added, "Wait."

"Yeah?" Mikan turned around, her pigtails bouncing.

He stared at his Fluff Puff before glancing up at her. "Thanks," he said so softly that only Mikan heard him.

Smiling again, she answered, "No problem!" Then she skipped away to sit beside Hotaru as the rest of the students listened to Roy, probably telling another story about his escapades in the faculty room. As he ate his Fluff Puff, Natsume looked away from everyone else, scowling and only softening his expression as he lifted Youichi up to sit beside him. He would wonder why the younger student wandered away from Mikan and Roy later.

"I think you don't exactly hate Mr. Mustang," Ruka suddenly remarked, but Natsume was glad his friend's voice was soft.

"What do you mean?"

The sound of children's laughter filled the air, and Mikan's high-pitched, bubbly giggles rose above the rest. Natsume narrowed his dark eyes and crossed his arms, not even meeting Ruka's gaze.

"Ruka, what are you talking about?"

"Never mind."

---

"Hello? I'm sorry, if you're looking for Mr. Mustang, he's spending the day with some of his students in Central Town. I'm Mr. Noda, how may I help you?"

A woman's voice asked, "Central Town? Do you mean Central Amestris?"

Noda chuckled. "No, it's a small town within the confines of the Alice Academy. May I know who is calling?"

"This is Lieutenant Hawkeye, from Eastern Headquarters, Mr. Noda."

"I see. Anyway, I'll just tell him you called – oh no." He glanced down at his legs and saw that they were slowly dissolving. In no time at all his arms and torso followed. It was time once again to travel through time, whether he willed it or not. _Why can't I get a better hold of my Alice? _

"What's going on?" asked the lieutenant.

"N – nothing," said Noda quickly. _She would never believe me if I told her_, he thought. Now the entire faculty room was blurring before his eyes. "I assure you, Mr. Mustang is all right. He's just taking some kids on a – field trip to Central Town. Goodbye!" He put the receiver back into its cradle just in time as the office dissolved completely and disappeared, sending him hurtling through a dark, gray vortex, which was swirling with flashes of light and color, as though someone had decided at the last minute to mix those into the concoction of time.

---

"Mr. Noda? Mr. Noda! Where's the colonel?"

The other end went dead. Whatever had happened to him, he still managed to hang up. Riza stood there, rooted to the spot, and slowly put down the phone. But for a while, she didn't take her fingers off the receiver and closed her eyes in thought.

"Who was it?" asked Havoc, passing by and trying to light a cigarette. Hughes was just behind him, eagerly leafing through some photos.

"A teacher from the Alice Academy," she said.

"That means the Colonel must be out somewhere…but where? Did he say anything?" asked Hughes.

Riza frowned, failing to hide the worry that was unfolding on her face and almost forgetting to salute her superior. "I…don't know, sir."

"What do you mean?" pressed the Lieutenant Colonel, pocketing his pictures. "What do you mean, you don't know?"

"He…Mr. Noda suddenly hung up," she said. "Although he said he'll tell the Colonel I called. But I think…something came up on his end of the line. And he said he was taking his students on a field trip to Central Town, which is also within the Academy."

"Then again, he's a teacher. He must have a lot of work to do," said Hughes, stroking his chin. "I think we're just being too paranoid again. And he did say Roy was with his students, right? That's nothing to worry about." He smiled at Riza. "If he doesn't call back like this Mr. Noda guy says, then you call him up again later on. Let him have some time with his protégés."

Havoc exhaled a bit of smoke as he leaned against Roy's usual desk. "I think we're just worrying about whether Mustang would make a good teacher or not."

"I think he will," said Hughes. "Come on; let's just get back to work. If you remember, the higher-ups made me take Roy's place for now, while he's gone. The Alice Academy gave them memos as well, apparently, so the entire East HQ knows where he is now, but at least they're not complaining too much. Plus, I think the Colonel would turn us all into charcoal if he finds out we're losing sleep over him and not doing our work."

---

When everything cleared, Noda found himself standing on top of a barren hill that was rocky and sandy at the same time. He took one step, and nearly tripped and rolled all the way down, but still managed to keep his balance. The sun was very high up in the sky, and he could already feel beads of sweat forming on his brow. But there was something down there – below his hill and a short walk away. It looked like a collection of tents, vehicles, and people were running around here and there, many of them in blue uniforms.

Noda instantly recognized them. _The Amestris military – the same uniforms as the one Roy Mustang wore when Narumi first took him to the Academy. _Now there were many of them wearing the uniforms, with varying numbers of golden-yellow bars and stars on the shoulders, denoting their respective ranks. Noda already knew how the badges of a colonel looked like – four bars and three stars. _Could Roy be around here somewhere? Am I in his past – or maybe his future?_

The teacher took a few more steps gingerly and slowly made his way down. _I must be in a desert of some sort…or at least, a barren land that would probably soon turn into one. _When Noda finally planted his feet on the ground and was now standing at the foot of the hill, he watched people breeze past him, carrying rifles and other equipment. Many of them had varying badges – a colonel passed by him, but he was much too old, bald and portly to be Roy.

Suddenly, he heard a very loud explosion. The hill over him started to shudder and shake, falling into bits and pieces of rock and hurried along by the surging sand. Noda gasped and ran for cover, fear lending him strength. The soldiers fled as well, but somehow, they didn't look as scared as he thought they would be. When the hill was nothing but a pile of rubble, Noda still crouched behind a pile of crates some distance away, but the soldiers were now resuming their work, but not before clapping and cheering, for some odd reason or other.

He looked up and saw a silhouette through the cloying dust clouds – and noticed that much of the rubble was scorched and reduced to ashes. The smell of smoke and something burnt was all over the place.

Then he heard a voice – too deep and overly imposing, definitely not Roy's voice. It came from a burly, tanned man with a black mustache and a bare head, flanked by two younger troops. He wore some kind of metal gauntlets, and his military jacket, indicating that he was a colonel, was open, giving everyone a good view of his muscled body.

"Very good…Major Mustang. Now try it with the ring, but let's find something bigger for you to burn. We're going to deploy you into Ishbal pretty soon."

The silhouette came into view at last, and Noda found himself watching a much younger Roy Mustang – not yet a Colonel. The major looked slightly uncertain, one of his gloved hands still outstretched from a snap.

"Yes, sir," said Roy, saluting. He had four bars, complemented by a single star, on each shoulder badge. His tone had almost none of that cocky bravado Noda knew, and he didn't carry himself as confidently and as surely as the present Roy who had stood up to Jinno and, according to Academy gossip, kept Natsume under control.

He was probably a lot younger than Noda thought, and a lot more inexperienced. And he was about to be thrust into battle, judging from the looks of things and how Roy's superior had spoken.


	6. Explosions

It was a much bigger explosion, definitely louder and more ground-shaking than the last one he felt. Noda gasped as he kept his balance, landing on a patch of sandy debris and rock after he was ripped out of what was presumably a part of Roy's past. All sorts of smells overwhelmed him – smoke, dust, gunpowder, and most of all, the unmistakable tang of dried blood, which made him wince. The sky was tinged red, orange and yellow with flames and sparks that rose and challenged the blue of the heavens, and his ears rang with the dying sound of the explosion that now mingled with other smaller explosions, the screams of men and women, the crumbling of buildings, the whoosh of smoke, and the crackling of fire.

Noda tried to weave his way through the wasteland that was getting worse every second. He looked down at his shirt, but had no time to react at the dirt caked there, or all over the rest of him. From the distance, he squinted through the dazzling inferno and tried not to listen to the continuous blasts of gunfire, bombs and other weapons he preferred not to think about. The teacher could see silhouettes of fleeing people – but amid all the chaos, it was hard to tell whether they were civilian or soldier.

He gasped as a shadow fell over him, briefly darkening his view. It was a man, a man in military uniform, probably the same height as he and with his back turned so he couldn't see Noda. The soldier didn't seem to be fazed at all by everything happening all around him, as he slowly raised an immaculate white glove, immaculate except for the red thread creating a very familiar sigil…

The soldier snapped.

Noda caught the slightest glimpse of a glowing red stone on his right middle finger before the resulting chain reaction forced him to dive for cover, gathering up even more dirt and rubble. Flames erupted, unnerving crackling giving way to huge explosions that sent fragments of concrete, rock and other materials everywhere, along with sparks and smoke. The burning smell was even stronger now, and the landscape was almost lost under clouds of gathering gray smoke.

Once again, he instantly knew who the soldier was.

This was probably not too long after the last period in time he had been tossed in, when he first saw a glimpse of Roy in his major days. Roy was still a major during this time, during the Ishbal rebellion – at least, Noda assumed that it was indeed the rebellion.

He inched a bit closer to get a better view of Roy's younger self. The Flame Alchemist was standing before the smoldering wreckage that was once a part of a city of sorts, staring at the ring on his hand – more importantly, the stone set into the ring. It was still glowing fervently with a haunting, crimson light, too reminiscent of blood. Behind those onyx eyes, Noda could see the reluctance, fright and shock.

Roy had already seen much more than his fair share of war, the teacher knew. How many years had passed since then?

---

"There you are, Noda. Where have you been? You could use a bath."

Noda was breathing hard when he finally reappeared in the office, beside Roy's table, the same place he had been when Lieutenant Hawkeye called. Misaki was the one who had spoken, clutching a small potted plant and staring at his colleague who had just emerged out of thin air, covered in dirt and ashes, his hair windblown, and his eyes wide, as though he had seen something out of the ordinary, and was just way too lucky to return alive.

Which was saying something, as the Alice Academy was already something out of the ordinary.

"What's wrong?" asked Serina, craning her neck and keeping a hand on her crystal ball. "Where did you go this time?"

But Noda shook his head, trying to calm himself down. "Nothing special…and I'm fine, thanks…I'll just go to the restroom. Can you tell Roy he had a call from Lieutenant Hawkeye when he gets back from Central Town?"

"No problem," said Serina and Misaki together.

"Are you sure you'll be fine?" asked Serina. The Special Ability class moderator nodded in reply, but said nothing, as his mind was on something else – still on what he had seen, heard, felt and even smelled as he traveled through the substitute teacher's history.

_Roy has seen a lot more than his fair share of war, all right…and so have I._

---

Around a couple of hours later, the phone on Roy's desk in Eastern Headquarters started to ring. This time, it was Hughes who answered it.

"Eastern Headquarters, Hughes speaking. If you're looking for the colonel – "

"Hughes, it's me, you idiot."

"Roy!" the lieutenant colonel exclaimed so loudly that Riza and the rest of the officers around the office perked up and stopped whatever they had been doing. Falman and Fuery nearly collided with each other while passing by with dossiers piled up almost up to their heads, Havoc almost lit his fingers instead of his cigarette, Breda narrowly kept his pencil from making a long, zigzagging mark on a map of Eastern Amestris, and Riza's face basically just lit up as she paged through a couple of books.

"So, how was your field trip with your students? I hope they weren't too much trouble, like I said, you can always call me if you have any problems – "

Hughes' voice trailed off when Riza cleared her throat, obviously a way of reminding him that there were more important things to discuss. He got the message, and quickly said in a more serious tone, "Are you doing all right? Anything suspicious we might need to know?"

Everyone was so silent that they could all hear Roy answer, "No, I'm doing just fine. The kids love me," he added smugly.

"We're glad to hear that, sir," said Riza nonchalantly, and Hughes relayed what she said to Roy, who chuckled.

"Anyway, it seems you must've met Mr. Noda. He has this tendency to…erm…_disappear _every now and then, since he's so busy. Like I said, there's nothing to worry about."

"No naughty kids?"

"No cleaning up after them?"

"No misbehaving juvenile delinquents?"

"No missing homework?"

Riza gave the rest of her colleagues a glowering look, but that didn't stop them from continuing to snicker.

"I assure you, don't worry about me," Roy continued. "And when I get back, I want to see everything in place. I'll probably be exhausted by then from grading quizzes and collecting homework."

"I see paperwork follows you everywhere," commented Hughes. "Don't worry, we'll keep working. Just promise us you'll do the same with your classes! Make those higher-ups in the Academy proud!"

"And tell us if anything does go wrong," added Riza, trying her best to smile, even though she knew Roy wouldn't be able to see her.

"I guess that's all, I still haven't finished checking these essays from Elementary Class A. See you, everyone."

There was a click, and Hughes finally put down the phone, nodding at a seemingly anxious Riza and saying, "I told you Roy's fine. Now, wasn't I right? I don't think we have to tail him.

"Not right now," he whispered so softly that only the first lieutenant heard him.

---

"Girls, what in blue blazes are you doing?!"

Three middle school girls were crouched beneath one of the windows of the elementary building, giggling and trying their best to stay out of sight. However, their giggles and smiles faded away as Jinno caught them, his frog croaking to indicate his presence, and his wand crackling precariously with energy, emphasizing the outraged scowl on his face. They quickly scrambled to their feet and inched away from the window, their backs against the wall.

"Please, Mr. Jinno, this is our free period," one of the students pleaded. "Our science teacher was absent…"

"Then why are you here? This is obviously not the Alice Academy middle school, and you could distract the younger students," growled the teacher, glaring at her. But he quickly averted his eyes and decided to glare instead at the teacher inside the classroom the girls had been peeking in.

He instantly knew exactly why the girls were there, and his theory made him snort in disdain and the lightning gathering on his wand sizzle with extra ferocity.

"Never mind…you three get back to your classroom and wait for your next teacher. Don't let me catch you around here again during class hours!" Jinno watched them flee towards the direction of the middle school, and only resumed walking when they were out of sight and out of his hair, cursing under his breath, but if anyone were close enough, they would have heard the word _Mustang_.

---

"In this sentence, 'the bunny' is the subject 'cause that's what we're talking about, and 'is eating the carrot' is the predicate 'cause that's what the subject is doing." Mikan drew a circle around the first two words in the sentence she had written on the board in English, and underlined the rest. She replaced the chalk on the ledge and looked up at Roy hopefully. "Am I right? I didn't really get it the first time…"

He grinned, his gold pen glistening in the pocket of his black jacket, starkly contrasting with the dark fabric, just like his fiery tie. "That's correct, Mikan. I told you it would be easy."

"All right, Mikan!" Yuu cheered. Hotaru gave her best friend a small smile as she scribbled notes into a turtle-shaped notebook.

"So that means I can pass your quiz tomorrow, right?"

Roy leaned against the desk and watched Mikan shuffle proudly back to her seat. "The quiz will be a really easy one, I promise. That is, as long as you all remember to study…" He picked up the chalk that Mikan had returned and wrote on the homework section of the blackboard, "Quiz tomorrow, English, subject and predicate". As he finished off the last _e_ in _predicate_, there was a sharp knock on the classroom door. But it opened before he could even take a step toward it.

Jinno stood in the doorway, looking quite pissed. The fist that clenched his buzzing lightning wand shuddered with suppressed hatred. The frog on his shoulder croaked twice.

"What brings you here, Jinno?" asked Roy lightly, sauntering up to him. "Still dissatisfied with my teaching strategies…or me in general?" He was smirking so broadly that the math teacher finally pointed his wand at him, still scowling. "Oh, you want me to burn another one of your wands? Why, I'd love to. I'll be back, class. Please work on page fifty-seven of your books." Roy exited the room and beckoned Jinno to follow and shut the door behind him.

"Seriously, what's wrong?" Suddenly, Roy was wearing a straight, though still somewhat smug face and his voice was a lot more serious.

"I found three middle school students outside your classroom window, spying on your classes," growled Jinno, withdrawing his wand, which simmered down. "Why the hell would older students come to the elementary building…during class hours?"

Roy scratched his head. "Dunno…I didn't see or hear anyone outside. Well, they weren't disrupting our class…I don't see why you should be worried. You could always tell them to just leave…"

"I did. I think they were spying on you, actually. We've never had cases like these…this isn't the first time we've caught girls hanging around while you conduct your classes! _You're_ a distraction to them!"

"But I really don't know how or why…" Roy grinned and ran a gloved hand through his hair. "Maybe they just can't get enough of me. Anyway, provided they don't suddenly start barging in, we're all right. Don't worry so much, I know how to keep things under control. Come on, Jinno, don't get so worked up. It's not like they were planning some kind of covert rebel organization to overthrow the government, right? And I have a class. If you don't have anything else to discuss, I'll be seeing you."

After waving Jinno away and watching him stomp off towards the next corridor, Roy reentered his classroom, with a much wider smirk.

"Now then…are we all finished with page 57?" A murmur of assent rippled throughout Elementary Class B, and hands, including Mikan's and Yuu's, shot up into the air, eager to give the answers.

Of course, Natsume's hand remained down, even as Ruka raised his. Natsume glared at Roy from under his black bangs, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair. His feet were plunked on the table yet again, but Roy instantly spotted them.

"Natsume," Roy chastised him.

"What did I do this time?" the boy complained, not obeying and not meeting Roy's gaze.

"You know, it's not proper for a young man like you to be putting his shoes on such a clean table. And you wouldn't want to scrub it when you accidentally leave dirt stains on it, right? When you grow older, what will girls think of you then?"

Natsume dithered at this question, his eyes widening slightly. But he looked away, preferring to focus on the sights outside their window. Ruka and his rabbit gave him a nervous glance, but either Natsume didn't notice, or was trying not to notice.

"Why should I listen to you?"

Roy arched his eyebrows and folded his arms across his chest, a gesture that further annoyed Natsume. All the students could see that his hands were gloved now.

"Because the administration says that I'm in charge of your class, at least, until Mr. Narumi gets back. We wouldn't want to go against the upper brass, don't we? We would be inviting trouble that way."

"How do you know? You're only a substitute teacher." A fireball appeared beside Natsume's head.

"Wrong move, kid," was the swift reply. A snap later, the fireball zoomed away from the boy before he could react further and blazed a trail towards Roy. With a few more snaps, the flames rearranged themselves to form what looked like a fiery silhouette of him behind him, standing in the exact same way.

Natsume stood up from his chair, knocking it over in the process. He was ready to use his Alice to regain control of the fire, but it was gone again.

And only one person could be held responsible for it.

"I thought we had already established this on my first day," said Roy, shrugging and keeping his eyes on Natsume as he rearranged his chair and sat back in it, once again foiled. Ruka whispered something into his ear, but the latter shook his head.

After that, class resumed as usual.

---

_Sorry if that was quite a boring chapter…I'm just trying to build things up from here…don't worry, I'll be adding other characters, like Ed and Al from FMA and Persona from GA. _

_Wait, not the pitchforks! Anything but the pitchforks! XD_


	7. An Interesting Character

In the Alice Academy, many people – if not all of them – are both respected and feared for their Alices.

Among the students, Natsume Hyuuga was one, dreaded especially by his peers for his fire. Jinno was a no-nonsense teacher who wouldn't hesitate to use his Alice against misbehaving students, and Mikan had learned this the hard way. And despite his usually affable attitude, Narumi's human pheromone was still a power to be reckoned with. There was also the newcomer, the substitute who was currently sitting in for both Narumi and Serina – Roy Mustang. Like Natsume, Roy could control flames, and many people, most notably the students of Elementary Class B, have been witness to his great power and the almost unnatural ease he wielded it with.

But there was one individual whom everyone in the Alice Academy respected fearfully and could possibly be the most notorious – and most mysterious – of them all. He went by the alias _Persona_.

He was the mediator between the government and the Academy, and headed the Dangerous Ability class, which included Natsume. Persona also gave Natsume and possibly other Dangerous Alices jobs that would often be carried out late at night, usually for the sake of the country, like a kind of special ops unit.

And right now, he was lurking around the grounds, as always. Clad all in black, Persona leaned against a tree and adjusted the mask that concealed his identity. From the corner of his eye, he saw an elementary student walk towards the tree and sit down on a huge root, opening a graphic novel as he did so.

"Hello there, Natsume."

The boy turned around and looked behind the tree to see Persona standing there.

"What do you want?" he asked brusquely.

"I've heard a lot about your substitute teacher. Not only is he a Dangerous Type, he also has the same Alice as you. If I were you, I would take lessons form him. He creates and uses fire as easily as you and I breathe. Although I must admit, I haven't met Roy Mustang in the flesh yet. I've just heard all about him all over the Academy, mostly from the middle school girls. I believe he even has a fan club now, even though he's only been with us for…over a week."

Natsume grunted and went back to reading his novel. "Why should I care? Mustang's just a bigheaded bastard who loves to show off."

Persona grinned, examining the many rings – Alice-controlling devices, actually – he wore on one hand. "That may be true, but many students – even teachers – are also bigheaded bastards who love to show off, if you put it that way. But you know…I find Roy Mustang a very interesting character. If he were a student, I would love to have him in my class."

"So what are you trying to say?"

"That's just it. He's a very interesting character. Whether or not you'll trust him is up to you, Natsume Hyuuga. Don't forget that we have business tonight."

Natsume nodded nonchalantly. "Yeah, yeah…" He barely noticed Persona slip quietly away, possibly to stalk the next Dangerous Type who came around. But he did notice people standing in front of him and blocking his light as he resumed reading.

"Hey…you're blocking my light."

"Oh, sorry," said Mikan, stepping to her right and nearly bumping into Hotaru. Meanwhile, Ruka stepped to his left and crouched down beside Natsume, whispering so the two girls didn't hear them.

"Was that Persona?"

"Yup."

Ruka nodded and glanced at Mikan and Hotaru, who were greeted by Yuu. The three of them were talking about something, and they seemed rather absorbed in it – a good sign.

"Natsume…" Ruka sighed and patted his rabbit's head, making sure he didn't accidentally hurt its ears.

"Don't be an idiot. Don't worry so much," said Natsume gruffly.

---

"Here is Elementary Class B's seatwork, Roy. Sorry…I lost the article I was going to show my Special Ability class. I thought it must've gotten into your work."

Noda felt his nerves tense and shivers crawl down his spine as he handed the papers to his temporary colleague. Roy did not know that when Noda took one of his inadvertent time trips, the latter ended up in the Ishbal rebellion, and even caught a glimpse of Roy in his younger years and earlier experiences in the Amestrian military. Even a few days after that, Noda could still vividly recall the horrors of war, and how Roy was in the middle of it all. The teacher didn't know if he should talk to Roy about this or not, but preferred to keep it to himself…at least, for now.

"Are you all right, Noda?" asked Roy, arching an eyebrow as he leafed through the essays of his advisory class.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me…I just have quite a bit of work to do…that's all…" _How does he stay so cheerful…so sane…after all that? _Noda had to wonder. _If I were him, I would have gone ballistic while making everything in my path explode in burst after burst of fire, but then again, Roy is a soldier, trained to handle things like these…and also trained to use his skills that way when he has to…_

"Hey, look, Mikan wrote a story about one of her classes with you."

Noda shook his head in an attempt to clear his mind. "Really? That's really sweet of her…"

"Seriously, I don't know why Jinno keeps on complaining about her being a troublemaker. Mikan Sakura is simply a very sweet little girl who always has something good to say. Although I have to talk to her about her performance in class, as she keeps making the same mistakes with her grammar and spelling over and over again, and she still confuses a transitive verb with an intransitive one." After checking to make sure not a single story went missing, Roy placed them underneath a heavy stapler doubling as a paperweight.

"Well…Mikan isn't exactly the brightest student, but she's definitely one of the most energetic. I don't think you'll have any problems with her, especially since you feel that way about her."

Both of them heard Jinno snort as he walked up to them, his frog croaking as though in agreement.

"You two are being too easy on Miss Sakura," sighed the math teacher. "Especially you, Mustang…I kind of expected more from you after hearing – and seeing – how you discipline Mr. Hyuuga."

"When it comes to Mikan, I don't have to resort to using my Alice – erm, alchemy," answered Roy, snapping in Jinno's face. The latter staggered backward before he realized that Roy wasn't wearing his ignition gloves, much to his humiliation and his colleagues' entertainment. When the laughter died down, Roy continued. "Anyway, she's a lot less of a handful than Natsume. I think _you're_ the one who has a problem, Jinno, not Mikan, and most certainly not me."

Jinno shot Roy a dirty look before stomping towards his desk, and did the same for anyone else who couldn't control their mirth.

"Narumi would have loved to see that trick," remarked Serina, one hand on her crystal ball. Just as fast as the smile had formed on her face, it faded. "I do hope he's still all right."

"I thought you could see wherever he went with your Alice," Roy remarked.

"I can," she answered, tucking a strand of her hair behind her right ear. "But I can't keep an eye on him _all_ the time, can I?"

For a moment, the Flame Alchemist was strongly reminded of someone he knew back in Amestris. "Anyway, I'll be off." He picked up his record book and a couple of grammar books from his desk. Checking to see that his gold pen was still in his jacket pocket, he waved to the rest of the faculty. "Speaking of Mikan, she'll be having a little extra class with me this afternoon. Transitive and intransitive verbs don't teach themselves, you know."

As he strolled away with his usual air of self-satisfaction and confidence, Noda sighed as he thought of the Ishbal rebellion again, and Roy in the midst of the chaos – even _causing_ the chaos with simple snaps of his fingers…

_He's a soldier. Sometimes soldiers have to follow orders they don't want to follow, especially when it's war. And judging from how Roy looked then, he definitely didn't like what he was doing too much. I'm sure glad I'm a teacher…_

The door clicked shut behind Roy as he left the faculty room, snapped Noda out of his thoughts, and inadvertently reminded him that he still had to work on the syllabus for his next few Special Abilities classes.

---

The first thing Roy saw when he opened the door of his empty classroom of choice was Mikan Sakura, twiddling her fingers and swinging her legs back and forth as she sat at one of the front desks. Her notebook was already open in front of her, and her chick-topped pen and book were on the tabletop as well. She turned around at the sound of the creaking door and her eyes lit up at the sight of her substitute teacher.

"Hi, Mr. Mustang!" she crowed, waving at him. He waved back as he took his place at the teacher's table in front and laid out his things on it except for a book entitled _Elementary English: Grammar Made Even Easier_.

"Well, I assume you know why I called you here this afternoon, Mikan," said Roy, flipping through the pages till he got to the one with a fiery bookmark that almost made the girl wonder if his book was on fire. "You want to pass English class, don't you? Not to mention our upcoming quiz on transitive and intransitive verbs…"

"I get sort of confused, even when Yuu and Hotaru teach me," Mikan admitted, pouting briefly. But she smiled again and added, "But I know I won't be confused anymore!"

Roy nodded, returning her smile. "Yes, hopefully at the end of our hour together, you'll be able to tell them apart without any more problems. Now then, let's start with the discussion, after which I'll give you a few exercises to work on so we can be sure you get the lesson. Don't worry," he said, as her optimistic expression flickered ever so slightly. "You'll be able to understand, I promise. We won't stop till you get it right."

Thus, the remedial English class began.

Neither Roy nor Mikan was aware of quite a few inquisitive students sneaking furtive glances through their window, ducking whenever either one of them so much as looked at anything besides the blackboard, the books, or each other.

And as expected, many of the nosy children were girls – and as always, they were from the middle school division of the Academy, not to mention the Roy Mustang fan club. They would crowd around the window and suddenly scatter like ants fleeing from a crushing foot whenever they thought they would be spotted. But luckily for them, teacher and student were too busy to notice.

"I wish I was bad at English too, so Roy Mustang can teach me, and we can spend an afternoon in a classroom together – just the two of us," a girl sighed dreamily, batting her long eyelashes and gasping as a classmate pulled her away from the glass.

"You idiot, didn't you see the Sakura kid look this way? She could've seen you!"

"Sorry…I was too busy looking at Roy Mustang."

"We all are," put in a third girl. "But if we blow our cover – "

"I know, I know," chorused several others.

While the fangirls argued amongst themselves, two boys discreetly snuck peeks into the window while a part of it remained unoccupied. Obviously, they weren't there for fangirling purposes…

"Hmph, just look at him," muttered Natsume, leaning against the wall and out of Roy and Mikan's sight.

"You can't blame Mikan for needing a few remedial classes," admitted Ruka. "And since our regular English teacher is out, who else can teach her?"

Natsume shrugged, probably in reluctant agreement. "I don't like him."

"I know. But – "

"I know," Natsume threw the words back at him. "And I don't trust him. There's just something about him, I can't put my finger on it. I don't like seeing _her_ alone with _him _like that, even if it's just for a remedial English class."

He felt his insides burn at the sight of Mikan laughing and clapping, probably at something Roy said, as there were only a couple of simple sentences written on the board – unfunny, boring sentences, to be exact. Still, Persona had a point – Roy Mustang was a very interesting character. Maybe he was also a bastard who was always so full of himself, but it was true that he was – as Persona had put it – _interesting_. Was there much more to the bastard than he thought?

"Come on, Natsume, let's just go," said Ruka, putting a hand on Natsume's shoulder. Apparently Ruka somehow knew what his friend was feeling right now, seeing Mikan so happy in the company of their substitute teacher, despite the fact that they were only there for schoolwork…

---

_So…sick TT Anyhow, there's not much to this chapter except introducing Persona. Ed and Al will come in later on, I promise. –smacks self for not updating- _


	8. Revelations

_NOTES: Events in Noda's latest time-traveling escapade are covered in episode 25. There are slight spoilers for those who haven't seen episode 25._

_I blame college, as always. When in doubt, blame college!_

---

When Edward and Alphonse Elric gently pushed the open door of Roy Mustang's office, they were pleasantly surprised to see Hughes instead, passionately arranging several picture frames on Roy's desk. In front of him were Riza and Havoc, plotting some points on a map of Eastern Amestris.

"Hey, what happened to the Colonel?" asked Ed. "Not that I'm complaining," he added quickly. He stepped into the office, and Al followed close behind with clanking footsteps after shutting the door behind them.

"You haven't heard, I presume? The news was all over East Headquarters – scratch that; may as well be the entire military," said Hughes, waving at the Elric brothers as they took seats beside the two lieutenants. "It's a long story, really…"

"We have time," said Al. "We just stopped by for a little visit…hope the Colonel's doing fine, wherever he is…"

The lieutenant colonel smiled as he shoved a huge stack of papers away from his precious photos. "That reminds me…have I showed you the picture of Elysia helping Gracia bake her famous apple pie?"

"Uh…we'd like to hear how Mustang suddenly went MIA," Ed replied. "I mean, it's not like him. Okay, so maybe it is…"

"To keep the long story short, Roy has been given a…erm, a very special assignment, which is to be a substitute teacher in the Alice Academy, a rather prestigious school for gifted children in the far-flung reaches of the East. He's teaching English and handling Elementary Class B, and he'll be there for a few weeks or so. That's where I come in and man things while he's out. Unfortunately this takes me so far away from my two beautiful, heaven-sent angels…"

The Fullmetal Alchemist and his younger brother traded a look. At first, neither of them said anything, as Riza turned away from the map to write down some notes on a piece of paper, Havoc muttered about sharpening his pencil, and Hughes sighed as he went through the documents he had set aside awhile ago.

Then Ed began to laugh. He laughed so hard that he clutched the arm of the couch he was lounging in for support. "_Mustang_?! A _teacher_? Seriously, Lieutenant Colonel…that was some joke. You almost got me there…you sounded so serious and everything!" He gasped and slapped his knees, laughing anew. "What about you, Al? Didn't you think that was a hoot?"

Al cocked his helmet to one side and scratched the top of it. "Brother…I don't think he's joking." He glanced at Hughes, who was now twiddling his thumbs as he scanned a document. Neither Riza nor Havoc seemed to be amused, either.

"Edward," Riza began slowly.

"Your little brother is right," finished Hughes, picking up the paper and waving it towards Ed. "Here's an official letter from the Alice Academy principals and administration."

Ed stood up, crossed the room and snatched up the letter with his automail hand. As he read, he heard a few clanking noises and saw a shadow cast onto part of the paper. When Ed was done, he turned to Al.

"It has signatures and seals and everything," said the younger Elric. "See? Colonel Mustang really is a substitute teacher!"

"I wish I knew how they got a guy like Mustang to do that kind of work," muttered Ed, more to himself than to Al or Hughes.

"And I have more proof," said the lieutenant colonel, as though he knew what Ed was thinking. Hughes picked up the receiver from the phone on his – actually, Roy's – desk, dialed swiftly, and waited. As it rang, he added, "Haven't updated him on – oh, hey there, Roy! I've got lots of interesting news for you, but first, I think someone wants to talk to you."

And then he handed the phone to Ed.

"Hello…Colonel Mustang?"

"Well, what brings you to East HQ, Fullmetal?" Roy's unmistakable tone filled Ed's ear. "Did you come to visit me…perhaps bring me a gift?"

"Very funny," Ed replied, obviously infuriated. "So, I heard about your new job. Does that mean Hughes takes over for good? I wouldn't mind working under him, actually."

Havoc snickered until Riza shot him a glowering expression. Hughes stifled a guffaw. On the phone, the Flame Alchemist chuckled, and Ed could almost see his superior smirking widely on the other end.

"Don't worry. I won't be here for too long. Why…will you miss me?"

The Fullmetal Alchemist gritted his teeth. "Why would I?" he shot back. "Who knows, it might be easier to get promotions over there!"

"Or, maybe when I come back, I'll be promoted."

"That's all you ever think about, eh, Mustang?" Ed snorted, giving the receiver back to Hughes. But before that, he put in, "I hope the kids are giving you hell."

"Oh, they don't. They're very good, actually…much more disciplined than you, Fullmetal. You could learn a thing from them…and they're only ten."

Hughes grinned, half-apologetically and half-amusedly as he talked to Roy again. "You should've seen Elysia try to make apple pie with Gracia…"

---

"How did those remedial classes with Mikan go, Roy? Did they do her any good?"

"Check this out, Noda – seven out of ten in the transitive and intransitive verb quiz. Not bad, don't you think? She's been working pretty hard – "

The substitute teacher's voice suddenly trailed off, and he stared out the window of the faculty office. He thought that, amidst the colorful background outside, he saw a flash of black. Roy blinked once, and it was gone.

"…Roy?"

"Huh?"

Noda waved his hand in front of Roy's face. "Hey…what's wrong?"

"Nothing," was the reply. "I thought…nah, maybe it was a student. Never mind. Noda, you're becoming…blurry…again…where are you off to next?"

"That's the thing; I always have no idea where I'll be off to next!"

"Does this mean you'll be calling off your next Special Ability class?" Serina chimed in, her hands hovering over her clouded crystal ball.

"I hope I'll be back in time," said Noda, as he started looking more like steam than a human being. Roy almost thought that his colleague would soon dissipate into the air. "No pun intended." And with that, Noda was gone again.

Serina and Roy, the only two teachers left in the staff room, traded a look.

"How's Narumi these days?" asked Roy in a bid to break the ice.

"Fine," answered Serina. "Sometimes I wonder why I'm missing all my classes just to keep a close watch on him. Then I remember all the trouble he's been getting himself into lately…"

---

For a long time, everything was pitch-black, and Noda wondered if his eyes were shut tight. He could feel himself flying and falling at the same time, but he was no stranger to this sensation, having experienced it so many times…

And then he felt his face collide with something hard.

He steadied himself with his hands and knees, feeling papers and clipboards on the floor, and knelt down to examine the object he had conked his nose against. It was dark brown and rectangular, and it read _Inconcessus Scientia_ in foreboding, gilded block letters underneath a picture of Leonardo da Vinci's _Vitruvian Man_, or at least something that resembled it. At least, he thought that was what he read and saw; the place he was hurled into was pretty dim, unlike the bright, blazing sunshine over the Amestrian army camp, or the bright, blazing flames Roy created during the Ishbal massacre.

Even though he knew he was unseen to the people of whatever time he had landed in this time, Noda moved aside as a hand reached out for the item he had been staring at, and almost sat on several charcoal drawings of circles covered in strange runes. This hand was splattered with red paint and smeared with something black that was either charcoal or a whole lot of grime. The person was hunched slightly, with unkempt dark hair, and the sleeves of his white shirt were rolled up to his elbows. Noda recognized the trousers and boots as part of the Amestrian military uniform.

But his back was turned, so Noda could not see his face. This stranger sat on the floor, working with a paintbrush and a bucket of blood-red paint. As he moved closer, the teacher watched as a new circle began to take form on the floor, and all sorts of lines intersected and entwined in it, including words written in splotchy script such as _cruento__, clementia, __viscus_ and _tergum._

Noda chanced a look at the man's face, crawling in front of him and avoiding the wet paint and the sea of reading materials. It was only a fleeting glimpse, but that was enough to make him almost back away against a desk that was overflowing with books and papers.

Roy looked much better when he was a soldier in the Ishbal massacre. This Roy Mustang, older than that one and younger than the Roy Mustang working in the Alice Academy, was in dire need of a shave, a wash, more proper combing than usual, a change of clothes, and most of all, a good night's sleep. Noda stood up and stared at the pocket watch open on top of a thick, leather-bound book entitled, _The Dark Side of Alchemy and Its Lighter Side_. It was twenty minutes past seven. Whether it was morning or evening, he couldn't tell, as the curtains were all drawn.

Tearing himself away from the strangely-titled book, he decided to examine the room he and Roy were in more closely. The walls disappeared under towering, filled shelves, and Roy's military jacket was draped on a chair. The badges had one more star than the badges he wore during the war.

Before the teacher could make any more observations, a knock on the door made both him and Roy jump. The latter got to his feet, thrust the brush back into the can, and shuffled towards the door, swaying slightly. He didn't look drunk, but he definitely looked like someone who definitely had to be shoved into bed.

When the door opened, a man not much older than Roy came into view. This newcomer also had black hair, but he had light green eyes behind rectangular-rimmed glasses. He stared at Roy at first, then grinned and said as he held out a basket, "Got my girlfriend to bake you an apple pie. You want it?"

Noda walked closer to them in time to see Roy smile back – a small, tired smile so incongruous to his scruffy features.

_Who was he? _Noda wanted to know. He and Roy didn't look like relatives…or so he thought. _Is he someone from Roy's past…maybe also his present?_ The man walked into the room and looked around, still clutching his basket. Just about nothing escaped his gaze – not the books, not the papers with many different circles scrawled on them, and definitely not the paintings and chalk drawings on the floor. Some of them were even on the walls.

"_Roy_," the man began, no longer smiling.

"It's called a taboo," said Roy, shrugging. "Forbidden alchemy…it's kinda fun."

_Taboo? Forbidden alchemy?_ Noda echoed to himself. _Was Roy's Alice – alchemy – _forbidden_? There was such thing as forbidden alchemy?_

He gasped as the man suddenly grabbed Roy by his collar, his green eyes boring into Roy's dark blue ones.

"I may not know much about alchemy," he hissed, "but I'm no fool, and I do know what happens to anyone who commits a taboo!" He let go of Roy, who sighed.

"You can relax, Maes, I haven't done anything."

"But you were going to," the one called Maes shot back.

While the two of them talked, and Noda listened to their conversation, he noticed the overcrowded table again. There was something else there besides research and a silver pocket watch, isolated from all that and off to one corner.

_A gun._

**---**

Noda winced as his bottom hit the floor of the classroom where the Special Ability Alices were talking animatedly. Misaki was complaining again about the overly eager and gung-ho Roy Mustang fan club, Tsubasa was rolling his eyes in agreement with everything she said, and Mikan was giggling, presumably at something Misaki said. Of course, everyone quickly turned to see their teacher appear out of nowhere, which was just normal.

"Mr. Noda!" exclaimed Mikan. "You're just in time!"

"Good one, Mikan," he answered, using the chalk ledge of the blackboard to support himself. Then he realized how wet his palms were. Wiping a hand on his pants, he ran a hand through his hair – which was also drenched with sweat.

"I don't think she meant that to be another time-related joke," said Tsubasa. "Never mind. Are you all right, sir? You don't look too good."

"No, I'm fine," said Noda, shaking his head. "I think it's time for – "

"Hey there, Noda, I see you're back…just in time. Get it?"

Mikan stood up from her seat and waved gaily. "Hi, Mr. Mustang!" she called.

Some of the girls – Misaki not included, of course – craned their necks to see who had spoken and used a time pun as well.

Noda grinned awkwardly, wiping sweat from his temple. "Oh…what brings you here, Roy?"

"Well, my next class is this way," said Roy, pointing down the corridor. "Where else do you think can I pass to get there, some secret passageway or something? Have fun."

"Was that for me or for Mikan?"

"Both of you. See you later. And Mikan, I do hope you haven't forgotten to study for today's quiz. You do know how to find object complements in a sentence now, right?"

Mikan saluted sagely. "Yes, sir!" She didn't notice the other girls whispering furiously among themselves and seeing how many furtive glances they could throw in Roy's direction without getting noticed. When he walked away, they all sighed and turned back towards Noda, whose little grin had already faded.

"You don't look fine," Misaki pointed out.

"Want us to take you to the hospital?" her doppelganger offered.

"No, no…it's just a little…headache. Too much time-travel, I guess," said Noda, forcing a laugh. "Now, where were we? We were going to have a practical lesson again today, right?"

The class nodded. As he picked up a piece of chalk, the fingers closed around the stick twitched ever so slightly.

What the children didn't know was that the image of Roy losing sleep and studying feverishly in order to break the rules of alchemy was haunting him, along with exploding buildings and the _Vitruvian Man_. _Why have I been visiting his past lately? Did this mean something? Was there much more to his Alice – alchemy – than I thought? Was there much more to Roy Mustang than the man who knew the best way to keep Natsume Hyuuga under control and to humiliate Jinno?_

_I'm going to become the Führer, Maes. I'm going to change how this country's run. _

And what did _that_ mean?

The image of the gun popped into his head next, and shuddered. Had he thought…thought of…

"Mr. Noda?"

Mikan's voice snapped him out of it.

"Oh…sorry, I must have forgotten what I was supposed to write. I remember it now, don't worry."


	9. Watching

_I CURSE YOU COLLEGE…and slight writer's block on this story. And on to my second semester I go!_

_And the next chapter of ST, of course._

---

When Roy gave the English quizzes back to his students, the first one to leap up waving her paper in the air and cheering was Mikan Sakura.

Hotaru was quick to burst her friend's bubble – or at least, try to keep her from doing anything rash. "You only got seven out of ten." Hotaru's paper showed a perfect ten with "Great job!" written beside the score.

"But it's higher than most of my quizzes! Aren't you happy for me?" asked Mikan, sinking back into her chair and still grinning from ear to ear. "I'm happy for you too – you're really good!"

With a sigh and a small smile, Hotaru admitted, "Yes, Mikan."

"Seven out of ten is pretty good, Mikan!" Yuu added.

"What did you get, Yuu?"

"I got everything! I can't believe it!"

"Wow, that's really amazing! You and Hotaru got perfect scores!"

Roy couldn't help beaming as well as his students went over their quiz results – with the exception of a precious few who chose to keep quiet and let their faces speak for themselves. "I'm glad everyone managed to pass," he said, twirling his faithful golden pen in one hand. "Looks like we're all ready for the next lesson, aren't we? We're through with verbs…and now we're going to discuss…"

Everyone hurriedly scrambled to keep their quiz papers and bring out notebooks, pens and pencils. As Ruka brought out his and his pet rabbit sniffed at his new pencil, he noticed that Natsume was not as excited – not that it was anything new. His quiz paper was now crammed into his pocket.

But Ruka wasn't the only one concerned with Natsume. Somewhere outside the classroom, Persona lurked nearby, surveying Natsume through his mask. Still, even though his business was with the boy of the fire Alice, he couldn't help watch the teacher with the fire Alice as well. They were different, Persona noted. And Roy Mustang was also different – as in, different from the other faculty, and something about him didn't seem exactly right.

He could've sworn that Roy glanced his way, and Persona ducked behind a tree. Maybe he should have chosen a green disguise instead, but then again, he just wouldn't look as intimidating when he looked like a plant.

Natsume had told Persona that he wasn't fond of that bigheaded bastard of a substitute teacher…and yet, although the boy didn't seem to take any interest in whatever lesson they were discussing, he was also watching Roy, in the same way Persona shifted his gaze from Natsume to Roy and back again.

_A very interesting character indeed_, thought Persona, stroking his chin. _I wouldn't be surprised if Natsume happened to be somehow related to Roy besides being his student._

Then he abandoned his spying spot, disappearing quickly into a grove of trees.

---

"Come in."

Even though it had been several days since Hughes took over Roy's position temporarily, Riza still somehow expected Roy's voice instead of Hughes' as she knocked on the door of the office. She entered, and indeed there was the lieutenant colonel, looking at a few photos which he pocketed as she placed the necessary paperwork on his desk.

"Sir, these are the new documents on the situation in the West," she said. "If I may ask, have you heard from the Colonel?"

The disgusted expression that briefly crossed Hughes' face as he flipped through the papers changed into one of amused concern. "Oh, Lieutenant, you're always worried about Roy, aren't you?" He began to chuckle and Riza felt her cheeks burn.

"Well, we aren't very familiar with that part of the East he's been assigned to."

"Which is why we're gathering up more information so we can keep track and warn him of anything that may endanger him, Lieutenant Hawkeye, and I'm sure he can't just call everyday, as he works all week; teaching kids during weekdays and recording grades on weekends. And besides, the Alice Academy seems quite safe, with many guards who won't let just anyone in. Their security's tighter than a drum."

Riza nodded in agreement. "True, sir…but we just can't be sure."

"You're not alone; we're all quite worried," said Hughes. "But the Colonel would slap us with those gloves of his if he finds out we're slacking off work just because we're scared for him, you know that. After all, I bet he's actually having fun. I would have fun too, if I were surrounded by all those kids…"

He pulled out a photo from his pocket. "I already have fun even with only one kid around! Look at this new dress Gracia bought for Elysia last week! I think she has great taste – both of them, I mean! Elysia loved it so much that she wants to wear it again – "

The phone rang, and Hughes had to put his gushing on hold to answer. With an extremely businesslike tone so very unlike the one he reserved for bragging about his family, he said, "East Headquarters, Hughes speaking. How may I help you?"

"You may help me by telling me what's happening over there, Maes."

The lieutenant colonel chuckled, which was enough for Riza to know who was on the line.

"Oh, Roy, don't you worry about us. Everything's going well, as if you were never gone. And yes, Ed will be submitting his report soon – "

He was interrupted when the door opened, and the Fullmetal Alchemist walked in on cue, his footsteps alternating with clanking ones that obviously belonged to his younger brother.

"Hey, Lieutenant Colonel, here's the report you wanted!" Ed announced. Then he paused, Al almost colliding with him. "Don't forget our deal though," he said with a wink, passing on the sheets of paper to Riza, who stretched out a hand and handed them to Hughes, who continued talking as he went over the report.

"And just like that, he came in here and handed in the report! Hah, maybe they should keep me here at East HQ!"

The Elrics – or at least, Ed – chuckled, and Riza was the only one who could hear Hughes add softly, "Which leaves you to take my post in Central…you'll be rising faster through the ranks than a cork in water!"

"Hughes, is that Mustang on the line again?" asked Ed suddenly, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, you want to talk to him? Hold on a sec, Roy…"

"No," retorted the older Elric, as though Hughes had told him to go grow an extra head. "But tell him that he's better off staying at that Alice Academy than being here and being obnoxious. Maybe he could put his god-complex to good use there and find people who'll actually listen to him."

Al shrugged metal shoulders, as though in apology, before the two of them left. When the door banged shut behind them, Hughes was back on the phone again, and Riza reorganized some documents on his – or rather, Roy's – desk.

"I'm sure you heard what he said."

---

"Loud and clear, Maes," said Roy, leaning back on his comfortable chair and poring over the syllabus. "I'd like to surprise Fullmetal and everyone else by coming back early, but I don't think that's going to happen, what with this Narumi guy I'm sitting in for still missing in action. I have no idea what he's doing, but hell, that's his business, not mine, and Miss Yamada is the only one who can look into it."

There was a pause on the other end before Hughes spoke again, his voice barely a whisper.

"Be careful out there, all right? I'm sure you know that the Alice Academy is no regular school. For all we know, that's only the tip of the iceberg."

"Since when have you been a worrywart?"

"Who's worrying? I'm just warning you like the kind soul I am. I know you'll take anything they throw at you. And enough of this depressing talk – I wish I could send you these new pictures of Elysia in her new dress – "

"Hughes, you do realize that being a teacher doesn't mean I get more time off. I have exercises to check and colleagues to entertain. Goodbye."

Roy returned the phone to its cradle with more force than was necessary.

"Is there anything wrong?" asked Serina, barely looking up from her crystal ball.

"Not – "

There was a knock on the door. Roy rose to answer it, but Misaki shook his head. As the door swung open before him, there was no sign of anyone. But there were signs of something – that is, several boxes piled up at his feet. There was no mistaking who they were for and from whom they had come, judging from the drawings and scribbles of flames on the cards, some of them dotted with hearts.

Waving Noda over to help him gather the rest, Misaki picked up a chick-shaped box and read the card.

"Roy, I hope you have a sweet tooth, because the middle school girls from the Technical class whipped this up for you; they're egg-shaped chocolates, apparently, and they hatch into chocolate chicks if you keep them warm long enough. I've heard that if you can keep yourself from eating them, they'll develop into full-grown chickens. Here's another one from them…and a box of free Fluff Puffs from someone called Kaira, and…"

"Don't worry, the other Alice types were not about to be outdone by the Technical Types!" crowed Noda, dumping the rest of the boxes on Roy's desk. Misaki followed shortly after before saying something about heading over to the greenhouse, while Noda decided on a trip to the bathroom, which left Roy staring at all the boxes of chocolate and his pen a mere inch away from Hotaru's paper.

As always, without looking at him, Serina remarked, "The girls have taken a liking to you, haven't they, Mr. Mustang?"

Roy selected the smallest box, one that was made in the shape of a bonfire, and opened it. "Want one? They're…ah, Fluff Puffs. I remember. Now how did the middle-school girls find out that I like them?"

"No thank you. You would be surprised," she answered matter-of-factly. "Many students here are extremely innovative and creative, but sometimes they get their priorities mixed up. Oh, and I don't think those are _ordinary_ Fluff Puffs. You would be surprised at what they can do with food."

He nodded, blinking several times as he saw the Fluff Puffs begin to change color, taking on the hues of fire.

"I think I'll keep on checking these papers," he said, replacing the cover, but not before popping one of the fiery treats in his mouth. Serina stifled a smile as his cheeks became pink.

But when she saw him glance out the window, she asked again, "Is there anything wrong?"

Roy shrugged. "For a moment, I thought someone was…well, watching me. Nah, there's nobody out there."

Serina thought it was probably a girl or two – or even ten – peering through the window, but decided to concentrate on her crystal ball. But at the very moment she thought of what could possibly be out there watching their substitute teacher, the hazy image within the ball changed abruptly, and she inched back suddenly, her chair shrieking against the floor.

"Maybe I should ask you what's wrong," he said.

"No, I'm fine…I just thought I saw something, that's all. No need to worry," answered Serina, taking a deep breath and focusing again. Narumi's face once again revealed itself to her.

The other face she had seen was gone.

And once again, everything was quiet between them, save the scratching of Roy's pen on paper after paper. When that was done, he stood up and got his coat.

"I'll take a walk," he said. "Besides, I've taken care of all my classes for today." After seeing Serina nod, he left.

Although it was quite bright, the air was not too warm. A cool, gentle breeze lifted his hair, much like the day he first met Narumi, and he decided to follow a winding path into a forest up north that he had never noticed before. The Alice Academy was indeed big, he knew, and there were many places he had not yet seen or even noticed.

Plus, this was a good chance to see who was watching him – if there _was_ anyone watching him.

The trees loomed before him, as though welcoming him, and he glimpsed what looked like a small house not too far away. But he stopped in his tracks when someone called out to him, a strange, almost haunting lilt, and Roy turned around, his right hand already in his pocket digging for his ignition gloves.

"Roy Mustang, I presume?"

He had never seen such an enigmatic figure before, at least, not since he had first set foot in the Academy. The one who had said his name was clad all in black, concealed his – the voice was definitely male – face with a mask, and was adorned with several silver trinkets, including rings on his fingers and ears. His raven hair, slightly longer than Roy's, was currently being buffeted by a stronger, cooler waft.

"Who are you?" asked the Flame Alchemist cautiously.

"You still don't know who I am? I thought your colleagues have already told you…"

Roy thought for a moment. "Hmm…I remember Serina telling me something about someone called Persona. I assume you're him. Anyway, what do you want?"

"I thought it would be nice to meet the newest celebrity in the Academy…famous, especially with the ladies," Persona drawled, leaning against a tree. "I've heard quite a lot about you, especially from Natsume Hyuuga."

"Really," said Roy, blinking.

"Yes…now then, now that I've met you in person, I must be off. You see, I am a very busy man; that's why you've only seen me today. And I know you're busy too…not only with your classes but also with the military, yes?"

"Yes – "

But Roy found himself talking to a tree instead.


	10. Nothing to Report

_Sorry about the delay, guys…I had MAJOR writer's block on this story. As in, even _I_ had no idea what would happen next. XD And I'll make up for this short chapter in the next one!_

* * *

"Things have been quiet without you around, Roy. So there's nothing to report. But what about on your side? I'm sure there's a lot going on at that school you're teaching in, considering that every student there is supposedly gifted in some way…"

Roy drummed his fingers on the surface of his bedside table, an inch from the telephone. "Not really. There's nothing to report here too. But that's actually a good thing, because that means getting things done more quickly. I seriously can't understand how this Narumi guy and all the other teachers stand all the work they have to take care of everyday." He stretched out one of his arms and yawned before adding, "Listen, Maes, I have to go. I'm really tired…"

"No problem. Have a good night then, Colonel."

"The same to you, and don't let it get to your head. You _are_ just covering for me, after all."

"Oh, that's something I won't forget. You know that."

"Good night, Maes."

The substitute teacher put down the phone and sighed, stretching out and yawning again. He had earned himself a good night's sleep, and there was no delaying his reward any longer. But before he could flop onto his more than comfortable bed, he saw something move outside his window. There was just something about the movement that was quite a bit suspicious…

Roy stood up and peeked through the glass pane. It was dark, all right…dark except for a few lampposts that marked paths through the Academy's grounds. But there was something else – it looked like a person moving through the foliage. Roy wondered if said stranger was just a groundskeeper or someone similar…and yet, the latter seemed too secretive to be staff, and looked as though he (or she) was trying to hide something, or simply hide.

_You're just being paranoid again_;the Flame Alchemist scolded himself sternly as he tried not to reach for the ignition gloves he kept locked up in the bedside table drawer. _The Alice Academy is full of strange people; maybe even the gardeners are strange like that. Or your eyes are playing tricks on you. It's dark, after all…_

With a sigh, Roy finally lay down and was asleep in the blink of an eye.

* * *

He kept this matter to himself even as he entered the classroom, where he was greeted with a resounding, "Good morning, Mr. Mustang!" which helped him briefly forget what he had seen last night.

"So then," said Roy, dumping all his things on the teacher's desk, "have you all finished the homework I gave yesterday? It's very easy…"

"No, it wasn't!" whined a nearby student.

"Yes, it was!" argued her seatmate.

"I think you'll love reading my homework," announced Sumire gaily, "as much as I loved writing it." She stood up proudly and handed in her paper personally before flouncing back to her seat. Everyone followed suit – although a lot less flippantly, led by Mikan, who was beaming as she submitted.

Last to stand up was Natsume, who scowled as he thrust his work into the stack of papers on the desk as though his homework was a ticking bomb. He had only moved when Ruka did, rabbit in one hand and paper in the other, and with a small smile on his face. Ruka glanced at Natsume, who just stomped back to his place in the back.

But before he sat down and stared at the surface of his table, Natsume gave Roy one last glare. Either the teacher didn't seem to notice, or purposely took no notice of it, as he arranged the homework alphabetically and got everyone's attention again. "All right, open your textbooks to chapter seven…" He picked up a piece of chalk and scribbled the page numbers on the board for everyone to follow.

Ruka was surprised to see Natsume comply right away – albeit grumpily, as though he would rather jump off a cliff than do whatever Roy said.

The rabbit's ears twitched, as though trying to tell its master something, but either Ruka didn't get the message, didn't need to, or simply ignored it. His friend, after opening the book to the required pages, let out a huge yawn. But he struggled to keep his eyes open; his strategy was to maintain a defiant stare as their teacher began writing more than just page numbers on the blackboard.

* * *

"Natsume?"

The boy opened his eyes and saw the familiar pigtailed girl staring down at him as he sat underneath a tree. He sighed, but then again, she was blocking the sun, which meant making things shadier, so he kept his mouth shut about it and said, "What is it?"

"Can I sit down…there?" Mikan pointed to the empty spot beside him.

"Go ahead."

He shrugged and didn't even watch her make herself comfortable. Natsume could feel déjà vu tugging at him slightly, but once again, didn't say anything about it. The two children were silent; Mikan reached out for a small daisy in the grass, while her classmate was busy twirling a stick he had found and stripping it of its leaves. At last, Mikan broke the ice.

"Where's Ruka?"

"Running an errand. Where's Hotaru?"

"In her lab, and she told me to stay out while she worked."

"Oh." Natsume yawned and tossed his stick aside, crossing his arms as he leaned back against the tree trunk. It didn't take too long for Mikan to ask another question – one he would never expect.

"Natsume…do you like Mr. Mustang?"

He sat up abruptly and stared at her as though she had asked him to jump off a cliff. "Did you just ask if I liked Mustang…as in, our substitute teacher?"

Mikan nodded.

"Why are you asking?"

"I guess I sort of got curious," she answered, looking veritably innocent. "So…"

"What about you? Do you like him?" he mumbled, knowing full well that this was a dumb question.

She smiled. "Of course I do. He's really nice and smart, and he helped me study, and…"

"When I first saw him, I thought he was a bigheaded bastard. And I was right. Look how he walks whenever he enters or leaves our class, or when he passes through the corridor, and especially when all the other girls follow him around. I think he even _knows_ he has a fan club. I can't wait till he's gone – I can't stand him."

Mikan was silent, but not for long. "Really?" she said, her grin fading, replaced by a more concerned expression. "But…he's a good teacher. How can you not like him?"

Raising an eyebrow, Natsume retorted, "Do you really have to ask me? It's none of your business. Can we talk about something else?"

She was slightly taken aback by his reaction and wanted to ask why he was asking why she was asking him, but Mikan just said with a glance at her pink wristwatch, "Oh…sorry. Anyway…I think I'll go see Hotaru now. Maybe by now she's finished with whatever she's working on…"

"Sure, go on ahead. See ya."

"'Bye, Natsume!"

Natsume glanced up into the canopy of leaves above them and heard Mikan stand up and walk away, her steps dying as she got farther and farther away. He heard another noise – something that sounded more like the rustling of a bush than anything else. Glancing around him, he found no one, and shrugged.

* * *

Roy stretched out his arms after undoing his fire tie, looking over his shoulder and through his window. It had been a couple of hours since the sun had set, and darkness reigned.

Something moved.

The Flame Alchemist could feel a strong sense of déjà vu and opened his window. When he did, there didn't seem to be anything at all disturbing the premises.

_Maybe some gardener is doing a little overtime, or students like sneaking out at this time of night…but what was there to do at night on the academy grounds?_ Roy thought of some possible answers to that question, and chuckled. The middle school students would probably have something on their mind tonight. And then again, perhaps the teaching job was beginning to get to him; probably the paperwork…

But it didn't seem to be stress at all. He knew himself, and knew that when he was stressed out, he didn't start seeing things.

A shadow flickered on the grass and shifted before disappearing from sight, but Roy didn't think too much about it, preferring to close his window and draw the curtains before changing and flopping into his bed.

Only this time, it took slightly longer for him to fall asleep.


End file.
